The Yarka Vendrinska Photojournalism Memorial Fund

1970 - 2002

This page has been built to describe a memorial fund we established for our daughter, Yarka Vendrinska, who passed away on July 23, 2002.  Since she was a young girl, she always had a wonderful passion for photography.  Over the years, her skill as a photojournalist was nurtured by the people she met and her overwhelming desire for the perfect technical aspects of her pictures.  Concurrently, significant and powerful events which occurred to her personally during her life gave her a unique perspective and deep personal understanding of the life and souls of her subjects.  I encourage you to take a moment to visit her website at www.yarka.net.  You will quickly become aware that she had a strong connection with all people she photographed, and was able to capture their images in a way that shows a powerful insight to their lives.

 To attempt to continue the giving and "understanding of others" that Yarka provided us all through her pictures, we wanted to do something to show to those who need it that kindness and hope are definitely still alive.  That is why we decided to endow a fund to offer assistance to those photojournalists in need to pursue their dreams.  In this way, Yarka is still part of the world that she loved, and her compassion for others will stay alive via her fund.  

Therefore, we are proud to announce that on the anniversary of her birthday, on April 25th 2003, we established The Yarka Vendrinska Photojournalism Memorial Fund at The Chicago Community Foundation.  The purpose of the fund is to provide grants to not-for-profit organizations that support photojournalism and provide workshops, training and travel assistance to young photographers.  All contributions to the fund are tax deductible to the extent allowed by law.  To be considered for an endowment from the fund, an organization must be a qualified 501 c 3 not-for-profit institution.  No grants can be made directly to individuals.  However, individuals can receive funds if they get them by going through a qualified 501 c 3 not-for-profit institution.  A definition of 501 c 3 not-for-profit organizations can be found by clicking on the following link: http://www4.law.cornell.edu/uscode/26/501.html

We invite anyone who feels they meet the charter of the fund, as described above, to contact the Chicago Community Trust to discuss the possibility of receiving a grant, or email us at YarkasFund@aol.com.

If you would like to contribute to the fund, please make your check payable to The Chicago Community Foundation.  Write Yarka Vendrinska Photojournalism Memorial Fund in the memo section of the check and mail it to The Chicago Community Foundation at the address below.  All contributions, regardless of size, are deeply appreciated.  Our intent is to have the fund continue to grow as the years go by so that Yarka's spirit can continue to give to those in need as they pursue their professional dreams.

If you have questions about The Chicago Community Foundation, or how to contribute other assets to the fund, please visit it's website at www.cct.org, and our donor profile at The Chicago Community Foundation can be found at http://www.cct.org/donors/donor_profiles/yarka.html

On July 23rd, 2003, we made our first $2,000 distribution from The Yarka Vendrinska Photojournalism Memorial Fund to The Maine Photographic Workshops  (http://www.theworkshops.com/) in the name of a Chicago photojournalist by the name of Robb Hill, to cover his tuition costs for a seminar at The Workshops.  We encourage you to visit Robb's website at http://robbhill.com   

On April 25th, 2004 we again made a $2,000 donation from The Yarka Vendrinska Photojournalism Memorial Fund to The Maine Workshops in the name of Aireen Joven, also from Chicago.http://magandagallery.com

On April 25th, 2005, we made our third $2,000 donation from The Yarka Vendrinska Photojournalism Memorial Fund to The Maine Workshops in the name of Bryan Meltz, from Atlanta, Georgia. We encourage you to visit Bryan's website at http://www.bryanmeltz.com 

On April 25th, 2006, we made our fourth $2,000 donation from the Yarka Vendrinska Photojournalism Memorial Fund to the Maine Workshops in the name of Amanda Abel, from Austin, Texas.  We encourage you to visit Amanda's website at http://aliasgrace.com

On April 25th, 2007 we made our fifth $2,000 donation from The Yarka Vendrinska Photojournalism Memorial Fund to The Maine Workshops in the name of Pat Semansky, currently residing in New Orleans. we encourage you to visit Pat's website at http://patsemansky.com

On April 25th, 2008, we were pleased to announce our sixth $2,000 donation from The Yarka Vendrinska Photojournalism Memorial Fund was awarded to The Maine Workshops in the name of Juan Arredondo, from Hoboken, New Jersey.

Also, the ARC Gallery & Educational Foundation showing of Yarka's pictures took place during the month of July 2003.  It was a great success and we would sincerely like to thank the many people who contributed time and effort to make it the fitting tribute that it was.  We encourage you to visit their website at: http://www.arcgallery.org

We have completed the development of a page of thumbnails from the pictures which were displayed at the ARC Gallery Show in 2003.  Please follow this link to this very important page, yarkasfund.org sales page. Each of these pictures is available for purchase in a limited printing, and again, all proceeds from sales of these pictures go directly back into The Yarka Vendrinska Photojournalism Memorial Fund.  

If you feel that this fund aligns with your gift giving desires or strategies, we, Yarka's family, would appreciate your donations to carry on this mission.  Thanks again to all of the people who have contributed to the Fund so far, both in picture sales and in gift donations.  

If you have further questions about the content of this page, we can be reached by contacting us at YarkasFund@aol.com.  Thank you for your interest and take care.

Mark and Tanya Bohr 

05/21/2006 04:49:31 PM