04/21/2020
Honored I was selected to mentioned for my efforts by the Friends of San Lucas for my photography work in Guatemala. I have been taking trips to San Lucas for several years with Jerry Thalmann and the North Central Coffee Lab.
I has been a very rewarding experience and been a time to work on personal projects with our photography studio to be refreshed for the work we do when back here in the US.
The people that grow and harvest the coffee are hard working and deserve to be paid a fair price for the product they produce. That is why we drink the coffee at our studio. Also it tastes awesome!
Meet Brad Thalmann! For day three of National Volunteer Week, we’re celebrating Brad’s contributions to Friends of San Lucas. 🥳
Brad is a professional photographer who lives in Green Bay, WI. He learned about the Mission through his uncle, Jerry Thalmann, who teaches at North Central College. Prof. Thalmann and another professor, Matt Krystal, have been buying coffee from the farmers of San Lucas since 2005 to help teach students about accounting, international and local business, fair business practices, and Guatemalan culture. Brad first visited Guatemala with his uncle in 2017. He helped by photographing coffee growers for marketing the coffee back in the US.
In total, Brad has now taken 4 trips to San Lucas sponsored by North Central College. He shares the photos he takes with the Friends of San Lucas to help us tell our story. During his free time during his trips, Brad has taken photos of Mission staff and buildings. He has also taken drone photos at the coffee facility to show over-head views for the coffee team’s future planning.
"Although some of the days are long because I am carrying about 30 lbs. of photography equipment on my back, it is almost hard for me to call it volunteering, as it is so much FUN to be there and a part of the project.
Volunteering with the Friends of San Lucas matters to me because I have a specific goal of doing anything I can to help the farmers of San Lucas sell more coffee through the Co-op. (It is a goal I have adopted from my uncle Jerry and Prof. Krystal.) When more people in the US buy the coffee, more farmers in the community can sell their beans through the Co-op and get paid a fair price for their product. If my photos can help the Friends of San Lucas sell more coffee and promote San Lucas to people in the US, I am happy to have played a small part in that.”
Brad, thank you for helping coffee growers and the Mission by sharing your talent for photography! 👏👏👏