Ready, Aim, Shoot!!

When Karen Hawley was in the 8th grade, she and her family moved from Santa Rosa, CA. to Corbett. Being the youngest of four girls, Karen's father was transferred here by the U.S. Forest Service to work on Mt. Hood. Being a bit nervous to start school, she got a reprieve. One of the biggest storms ever hit the Corbett area in Dec. 1977 when they made the move. School was canceled for 10 days due to snow! Once Karen did get started, she was "not happy" with the lack of fashion, small classes and poor academics. (What a change we've seen in the academic arena!) Eventually she "grew into" her new surroundings and learned to love and appreciate the new lifestyle. In high school, Karen found herself involved in several things, including yearbook editior, but the biggest passion of all was photography. At age 15 she worked all summer at a nursery tying trees so that she could afford to buy her first "nice" camera, a Nikon. After graduating, Karen headed back down to CA. for college, where she met her husband, Rick. Together they moved up to Portland after graduation. After five years of "city life" Karen longed to be back in Corbett to raise their family. Currently the home she shares with Rick and their three daughters aged 15, 12 and 7 has majestic views of the Sandy River. Karen loves to see the beautiful seasonal changes on the river, and also appreciates the "agricultural view" of next door's land. Currently they are viewing a beautiful pumpkin patch! In the midst of raising the girls and being heavily involved as both a volunteer for ten years and now a board member with Corbett Children's Theatre, Karen has gone back to her childhood love of photography. Last fall Karen asked a local gal if she could photograph her family on their farm. When the gal saw the photos of her family, she wept because they were so special and meaningful. One thing lead to another and now Karen has her own business, specializing in seniors, family portraits and weddings. She can be reached via her website: www.karenjhawleyphotography.com Karen has traveled to Japan, Europe three times, South Africa and also to China to pick up their youngest daughter Kate when she was adopted. Of all her travels, what is a favorite spot? Home! "Corbett is beautiful, quirky, smart, convenient to Portland and community-driven."