And The Emmy Goes To….

Many of you have seen and remember the various stories that Bob Buckley produced along with our local FOX 8 news station throughout this past year.  What is not as well known {or given much thought} are the “behind the scenes” people who work with reporters such as Bob to shoot, create, and deliver these stories to the public in a manner that touches their hearts and minds in a lingering way.  Bob and his team toil through hours of filming, interviewing, editing, writing, and so much more, to bring a story that airs for a few short minutes, while still capturing the information and complete essence of the hours upon hours of time researched and spent.  A small window into this world has been opened to us as we have spent much time with Bob and his photographers through these many months.  We have had the privilege of meeting and working closely with two of Bob’s photographers, Eric Sander and Ferlon Webster.  Both were fantastic, and we enjoyed personally getting to know each of them during our time together.  But it was Eric who sat across the table from us along with Bob in that very first meeting…the meeting in which I was certain we would politely listen to what they had to say and then {as graciously as possible} tell them that there was no way we would ever allow a news team to document or even be present for such a personal and difficult moment of our lives.  It was also Eric who was present and filming during the ultrasound appointment in which we were given the first glimmer of hope; and it was Eric whom we called as they prepared us for the emergency delivery of Noelle {and having no idea what outcome to expect} on that early December morning that changed the course of our lives forever.  Needless to say, we have a special bond with Eric and thus were incredibly happy for both him and Bob this last fall when we learned that they had both been nominated for Emmy awards for the work they had done on our original story.  The nominations alone spoke volumes of their level of work and commitment; but these nominations turned into higher honors when the actual awards banquet arrived in January and both Bob and Eric received Emmy awards for their individual {and yet collective} efforts on this particular story.

FOX 8 Brad Jones, Bob Buckley, and Eric Sander with their Emmy Awards

It was more than well deserved for not only had they effectively portrayed the event, but they had also remained honest and true to our personal desires and most importantly, our faith in God.  We could not have been more happy for two people who have become very dear to us along this journey.  But our pleasure upon their behalf turned to humble surprise a few weeks ago after Bob Buckley contacted us and requested to meet in order to give something to us.  I did not think too much on the subject and assumed that perhaps he wanted to pass along some extra footage from some of the later stories.  We arranged a time that worked for him to drop by and see Tom and Noelle {I had taken the opportunity to run a few necessary errands since we are still on lock down and cannot take Noelle out}, so I was shocked when I arrived home and saw the “something” that Bob had delivered.  It was Eric’s Emmy award.

We had not seen Eric in months since he moved across the country last summer and had been in the region for only a short time for the awards ceremony; but here, in our very own hands, was his hard-earned award.  Words could not adequately describe what we felt or thought, but we were incredibly humbled at the gracious gesture that had just been extended to us.  But why?  For while the world around us holds these types of awards in the highest esteem, it meant something entirely different to us.  It is a symbol of friendship, love, and sacrifice, an emblem of sweat, toil, and tears.  But in the end, to us it is another physical reminder of God’s grace~visible evidence of a story written by Him that has now touched people’s lives forever.  And so we cherish it; and we thank you, Eric, for your amazing generosity in passing along something that means so much to you not only in your career, but also in your personal endeavors…for the two are never truly separated.  Even more than that, we continue to be grateful for the story that has now been so carefully documented for us to continue to share with our friends and family across the world.  That is a gift for which we could never adequately express our appreciation.  We look forward to the day when Noelle questions us about this award sitting in our home, and we can say to her, “let us show you a story about a tiny miracle baby….”  Our hearts could not be more full.  Thank you.