This is Danielle, a young lady who happens to be an indigenous Alaskan.

Dexter

Perry

This is Perry of Perry’s Original Roadside BBQ. Although he is based out of Sarasota, Florida, his mobile BBQ technology gives Perry access to the entire Tampa Bay area.

 

Southern BBQ bragging rights are hotly contested, but Perry is right up there with the best of them. So, if you are lucky enough to run into him, I recommend that you stop and smell the BBQ. After the sniff, indulging is a given!

Dallis

I met Dallis at the Sarasota American Indian festival.  He was sitting in a folding chair on the edge of the dance circle, watching the festivities and the people when I approached him to ask permission to take his photograph.
I learned that Dallis is Cherokee on his mother’s side and Seminole on his father’s.  He lives in Tampa Bay so he can be near his son who works nearby.  I asked his name, then spent the next few minutes getting the pronunciation correct.  The name sounds very much like the Texas city, Dallas.  However, unlike Dallas, which stresses the first syllable, his name, Dallis stresses the last.  A nuance my Bronx ears strained to grasp.
I readily agreed when he asked if I would like to know how he got that name and I was enthralled listening to him recount the story.  As is common with most Indigenous Americans, tradition is highly valued.  One such tradition of the Cherokee people is for the child’s mother to place her infant on a blanket on the ground when relatives and friends came by with gifts for the baby.  One such gift was a pair of baby shoes, which my new friend grasped and shook like it was a rattle.  The guests roared their approval, and he was promptly dubbed Dallis.  In the Cherokee language, Dallis means, ‘he who walks with shoes’.

See the Human Family Group for more encounters and photos with former strangers at <a href="http://www.flickr.com/groups/thehumanfamily/pool/">www.flickr.com/groups/thehumanfamily/pool/</a> - it is well worth your visit!

Paul September 2016

Ringling groundskeeper and entrepreneur.  I met Paul when I arrived at the Ringling for a mini-class in lighting.  He was feeding the Koi near the Muse Restaurant and when I noticed him, he beckoned me closer to photograph the Koi.  I was not too interested, because Koi are very difficult to photograph while they are swimming freely in a pond.
I learned that Paul was very proud of the Koi, because, although his job is groundskeeper, he was able to secure a donation that enabled the Ringling to stock the freshwater ponds on its grounds with these fish.
As we chatted, Paul informed me that he, along with his wife, were also the proprietors of a small company called ‘The House of the Broken Dragon’ which manufactures cotton kimonos in the Sarasota area.

You can view more street portraits and stories by visiting The Human Family group on Flickr
 <a href="https://www.flickr.com/groups/thehumanfamily/">www.flickr.com/groups/thehumanfamily/</a>


<a href="http://houseofthebrokendragon.com/" rel="nofollow">houseofthebrokendragon.com/</a>

Natalie

I met Natalie at an exotic automobile show that her church was sponsoring. I attended with the express purpose of photographing cars.  Natalie was staffing the volunteer table when I stopped by, and judging by the look in her eyes, she thought I was a bit weird when I asked to photograph her, but she decided to humor me. 

In short order, we were laughing like we had known each other for a lifetime.  Natalie had just returned home from a mission trip to South America.

This is my 2nd submission to the Human Family group on Flickr.  Visit the group to see more portraits and learn more about us. 

 www.flickr.com/groups/thehumanfamily