
Mid Bay News
And she does it for free.
It’s a cool March evening at Niceville High School. The baseball team takes the field. The tradition just isn’t the same without a couple of things:
Paula takes photos of all 17 sports played at the four different Niceville schools – NHS, Rocky Bayou Christian School, Ruckel High School and the Lewis School in Valparaiso.
It’s been her labor of love for the last eight years. She does it out of a passion for the kids in Niceville. Just like she has her entire life.
Paula is a retired elementary school teacher. On this evening, two of her former students are on the field playing ball for NHS.
“I’m not too bad with a camera, so I just like to do it for the kids,” she says while the boys on the team begin their warmups behind her.
Paula takes pictures of all of the kids – and posts them on Facebook for everyone to enjoy. She’s taken countless snaps in the last decade.
You’ve seen ’em if you’ve been on Facebook – or liked a local sports page. Varsity football or theater – she takes photos of it all – for free.
“That’s what it’s all about – the kids and their families. And the families that can’t be here at Niceville get a chance to see their kids in action,” Mims said, “So it’s just fun. I do it for the kids.”
By her count, she’s at about 200 events every year. She only hopes that other people see what she does and are inspired to help.
I would hope that if they see me volunteering my time to give back to the community, they might be inspired to give back in the way they can. Because it is so important, just to give back.”
If you want to see her work – check out Apple Photography on Facebook.
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