06/23/2026
There's a moment at the end of every RUPCO event where I put my camera down and just let myself feel it.
Their annual Celebrate Community event at the beginning of June was one of those moments.
I had the honor of photographing RUPCO's 2026 annual Celebrate Community fundraiser at Highpoint, the stunning rebuilt church facility in Newburgh that has become so much more than a building. It's a symbol of what's possible when a community decides that no one should be left behind.
Kevin O'Connor, RUPCO's CEO, stood in front of a room full of donors, volunteers, and advocates, people who give their time and money so that other people can have a roof over their heads, and he got emotional. He talked about how many people he has met in recent years who were living out of their cars.
Not people who made catastrophic choices. People who ran out of runway.
I photograph a lot of events. I don't cry at all of them. The work they do, hearing the impact directly from the people they house, always makes me tear up.
If you want to support the work RUPCO does across the Hudson Valley, the housing, the homeownership programs, the community infrastructure that helps people stabilize and not just survive, visit rupco.org. Every dollar they raise at events like this one goes toward making sure fewer people spend another night in a parking lot. And if you need to host an event, they rent out the space at Highpoint to support the good work they do in our communities.
📍 Highpoint, Newburgh, NY
📸 Stellar Films & Photography | stellarfilmsandphotography.com
🔗 · rupco.org
