Spring Senior Pictures with Family in Charlotte’s Gorgeous Parks

One of my kids is graduating from high school tomorrow. Not my own flesh and blood but one I’ve had the honor of watching grow into a beautiful young woman. I’ve photographed this amazing senior so much over the years that she has her own facial recognition on my family computer. I am not kidding. From Halloween costumes and lemonade stands to swim team ribbons and art projects, her presence in our family life is deep and strong. I’m so proud to share her new senior portraits with you today. Tomorrow I will be even more proud when she accepts her diploma from Providence High School here in Charlotte, North Carolina.

Meet my friend Ella. She’s had an award-winning senior year and is attending Virginia Tech in the fall. Ella plans to major in Civil Engineering with a concentration in Environmental Engineering. She hopes to help combat major worldwide issues like climate change. With her recent Outstanding Senior Engineer Award from Providence High School, I’d say Ella is the perfect woman for the job.

Because of the pandemic, Ella and many of her senior classmates applied to colleges without having on campus experiences. Ella knew she loved the academic side of Virginia Tech and that the engineering program offered exactly what she wanted. But it wasn’t until she was able to visit – after acceptance – that she knew it was her future.

“I realized it was not just the academic side the campus that I loved. My family and I hiked to a nearby waterfall and I remember feeling like I could see myself here hiking with new friends. I also really saw myself in all of the students on campus sitting outside having a picnic or just getting work done. I am extremely excited to be going to VT in the fall!“

Ella Fox, Providence High School Class of 2021

Ella is President of The Pride of Providence Marching Band and is the recent recipient of the Excellence in Band Award. She is in the National Honor Society, Science National Honor Society and Tri-M Honor Society for music. Ella played flute all four years and took on leadership of the band in 2020-21. She says it was a difficult year with Covid restrictions – no band camp or competition season – but that she still loved every moment they had together. I love her positive attitude. She’s always been that optimistic and still is. Not surprisingly, she recalls many favorite memories from this unusual senior year including the senior tradition of playing Old Scottish, Pep Band and Car Circle. I’ll let Ella explain:

“One of my favorite band memories is playing Old Scottish with all of the seniors. It’s an annual tradition at the last concert of the year, but we didn’t have any concerts this year so we weren’t sure if this tradition would continue. Thankfully the seniors were given the opportunity to play the piece together in person. It was our first time playing as a real concert ensemble this year, and also for me, the last time ever playing in my high school band room. It was a really emotional and special moment for everyone.”

Ella also participated in Pep Band this year, playing in the stands at football games. The football season was delayed until spring and limited in scope, but she recalls loving the energy of the playoffs:

“We had not had that much excitement in the stands in a long time, so it was very special.”

In addition to these favorite moments, Ella and her friends created their own silver lining. They started meeting every Saturday in a local parking lot to hang out and catch up. They call it Covid Car Circle and it’s been going strong since March 2020. It’s a really great way to see everyone safely, even friends who started college this past year attended. That never would have happened in a normal year because they would have moved away. I love these kids. They are making amazing memories despite the challenges.

I am so proud to know you Ella. Your positive energy is beyond inspiring. Virginia Tech is lucky to have you and I’m supposed to tell you “Let’s Go . . . Hokies!” Apparently it’s a Hokie thing. Enjoy your summer! Come home often. We love you.