Angelo Merendino used his artistry to honor the woman he loved.
These bittersweet photos say it all.
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Angelo Merendino is a man I have not met, but I’ve shared his work again and again; I offer these images—honoring, in my small way, the simple magic that is his love.
True art moves us, it takes us on a journey. And I have not come across such a fierce and delicate journey as Angelo Merendino’s—not ever. This photograph series consists of images of his wife, Jennifer, during her battle with cancer—a battle she lost eventually, but not before leaving us with some of the most remarkably beautiful, hauntingly raw images I’ve ever experienced.
I urge you to take time with each of these images individually, get inside them. Meet Jennifer. Witness her bright spirit in spite of the battle she was made to endure. See her in the environments she knew so intimately. Meet her supporting cast. See the ‘normal’ they maintained for her—the conversation, the laughter, the quiet.
Meet the man who loved her, who honored her, until the very end.
Remember too that this is a story—a true story—with an arc and a conclusion. Watch as Jennifer’s energy and expressions change over the course of this story—this is what cancer claimed. This is how Angelo honored the truth of her journey; yet somehow, even in something so terrible, we can hold tight to the something that makes us sigh a little deeper, if only to honor the breaths that were taken from her.
Angelo Merendino had to say goodbye to his wife, but his photographs allow her spirit to continue on. She is still doing work in this world, she continues stirring hearts.
Thank you, Angelo—you’ve showed us what it means to love; and thank you, Jennifer—you’ve changed my heart in some mighty way.
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Angelo via The Battle We Didn’t Choose: To honor my late wife Jennifer, who passed at the age of 40 from metastatic breast cancer, I have started The Love You Share, a non-profit organization whose mission is to provide financial assistance to women in need while they are receiving treatment for breast cancer. Fifty percent of the net profits from sales of my book will be donated to The Love You Share. I cannot think of a better way to honor Jennifer’s legacy than by helping others. Download a sample here.
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Photos: Angelo Merendino Photography
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I have friends who died of cancer. This photojournal of a couple’s trip through the Valley of the Shadow is beyond moving. Thank you…
These photos of Jennifer’s end of life journey are so very powerful. They make me stop and really THINK about how fleeting our time here is. I will hold those I love closer and tell them, really tell them, how important they are to me. Not tomorrow. Not later. Now.
I want to thank you for sharing your photos, you are very brave and so was she; each photo gave a different significant emotion and by the end of the photographs, SO mixed with a combination of these emotions, I cried, I have not cried for a long time and I thank you, it shows I still am human. Your uniqueness will carry on for a very long time, to reach out to many in so many different ways. I wish you peace and happiness (: hugs, corinna valenti