It's A Small World

Candice · September 30, 2024, 12:25:50 PM

I'm going to pull this post and not leave family info here when the doors close. It was fun sharing. Just recently I had my Instagram account hacked. The person is still posting on it but at least removed my family pictures.

Shadow · October 02, 2024, 11:22:00 AM

Very cool Candice. Thanks for sharing.

Candice · October 03, 2024, 01:33:37 AM

It was a fun find, Shadow.

Lynnya · October 03, 2024, 01:57:20 PM

Nice Candy, thanks for sharing. I wish there was some work for us to do.. I really miss working for OPR as do all of us I'm sure..:(

Candice · October 04, 2024, 03:40:06 AM

Quote from: Lynnya on October 03, 2024, 01:57:20 PMNice Candy, thanks for sharing. I wish there was some work for us to do.. I really miss working for OPR as do all of us I'm sure..:(

I'm like you, Lynnya. I really miss OPR. I miss the people and the feeling of being involved with something that means something to someone.

I tried a couple 'restoration' groups on FB, but most of the work is "one click" wonders. AI is being used so much now. Some of the programs do all right but some only pick up on the face and nothing else gets done.

There were a few photos that I knew would need someone with restoration skills and I did work on those. Most, as you might guess, were soldiers. lol

In any case, here we are in time, with another Katrina. I hope someone helps those people restore their memories, like we did back then.

Hugs, Candy

Shadow · October 04, 2024, 10:23:16 AM

So well put Candy!

Mhayes · October 07, 2024, 12:09:36 AM

Hi Everyone,

I share your feelings as well, but unfortunately OPR is coming to an end. Since Covid it meant that we needed to do things differently, part from a health standpoint and also money wise. We offered free scanning at a FedEx site, but no takers. Because of the long stretch of no activity, we lost a lot of volunteers. What is left is our most loyal and productive volunteers, and a very dedicated inner team that has been with me since I've been president.

I had already planned on making this announcement that it is time to close up our web page. It would have been nice to still have the OPR Forum, but it never runs smooth and Shujen and Omar spend a hot of man hours trying to fix things. With Hurricane Helene and the devastation rivaling Hurricane Katrina, it didn't seem right to give people hope that we could help. We will continue to have the OPR Facebook page running which gives information on how to save flood damaged photos, but that will be all.

I am very proud of what we accomplished and the wonderful restorations you have done. Yes, I wish there was different outcome. When Dave Ellis and Becky Sell started OPR they never expected it to last more than a couple of years. Instead we make 18 years--a real accomplishment. I would also like to mention without DigMyPics financing our printing we would never have made it when I took over as president.

Last but not least, I will miss your friendship!

Margie

Lynnya · October 07, 2024, 11:11:59 AM

Margie thankyou for everything you and the team have done. You have all made such a difference to many people's lives, including mine and the other dedicated volunteers. We all loved the work we did and that time will always have a special place in our hearts.
Times have certainly changed..

We stand by.. just in case.

Lynn xx :(

Candice · October 08, 2024, 03:12:54 PM

The question is when, Margie?

Mhayes · October 08, 2024, 04:25:16 PM

Thanks Lynna, appreciate that!

Candice, I can't give you exact date, but most likely sometime this month. We will keep our 3 domain names: .org, .com, and .net for a year. That is to keep someone from coming in and claiming to be us. Plus, it leaves open the possibility of starting up again in a year.

We have Hurricane Milton about to hit and warnings for residents of Tampa Bay to evacuate or possibly not survive.

Marge

Candice · October 09, 2024, 03:42:03 PM

Quote from: Mhayes on October 08, 2024, 04:25:16 PMThanks Lynna, appreciate that!

Candice, I can't give you exact date, but most likely sometime this month. We will keep our 3 domain names: .org, .com, and .net for a year. That is to keep someone from coming in and claiming to be us. Plus, it leaves open the possibility of starting up again in a year.

We have Hurricane Milton about to hit and warnings for residents of Tampa Bay to evacuate or possibly not survive.

Marge

Margie, you've gone the extra mile keeping it open this long! So have those that worked with you.

I hope that there will be a way to contact someone should an undesirable sneak in, steal, or hack, like I sent to you and Chen a while back. That was nasty!

In any case, those of us that have been here forever, will be here until the last.

Candy

Hannie · October 11, 2024, 01:26:27 PM

Times have changed so much, it is very sad that all this photo restoring knowledge will be lost when we stop. Of course Photobucket gave us the first blow by keeping our images hostage.
I do so admire all the work and many, many hours of dedication to restore so many photos by our volunteers. You are a great bunch and I love you all!

Hannie

Mhayes · October 12, 2024, 03:28:34 PM

Hannie,

I totally agree! I wish we could have just kept the Forum but it seems it caused more grief for Shujen and Omar when the site would go down. Photobucket ruined all the pictures showing examples of how we restored photos. Somehow we always managed to bounce back, but this time the obstacles were too much when we couldn't continue to do copy runs. Plus, with all destructive hurricanes keeping the site up would give false hope.

Hannie, you were a treasure in your knowledge and way of helping volunteers get better. You also were valuable in switching gears and helping behind the scenes. I have so enjoyed knowing you and will always remember the time we had a 3-way chat at 2 am my time with you and Tess. Last but not least I enjoy your sense of humor.

Besides all volunteers a big shout out to the Inner Team: Hannie, Jan, Shujen, Kiska, Jonas, Bambi, Victoria, Pat, Mike, Omar, and the late Tess. And to Scott & Annette Crossen with DigMyPics.

Pretty neat our volunteers were worldwide.

Will miss you all!

Margie

Hannie · Reply #13 - Re: It's A Small World

And an even louder shout out to our hard working, always present president, Margie!
(unjustifiably also known as SWMBO)

schen · Reply #14 - Re: It's A Small World

Wow! It's been 18 years. I have received a lot more from this organization than I gave. It sharpened my Photoshop skills. I met many wonderful people in person or online. I pretended to be a webmaster even though I often called upon Omar, the real IT/Webpage expert, for help. I am going to miss all of you and the work we did.

I have to tell you the story about our SWMBO. In February 2014, Marge sent me to Washington, IL for a copyrun. I was the only person on the team who worked on a copyrun before. The day did not start well. A snowstorm hit the area the night before. The road was slippery and there were semis flipped over to the roadside. A two-hour drive took me three hours to get there.

As I was assembling the team (that met for the first time) and the equipment, the line was getting long. Then my rear lens cap cracked and jammed the camera. In the midst of all these, Marge called. I put her on speakerphone and continued to try to make the copystand work while reporting the situation to Marge. Marge must have felt apprehensive from a long distance. On top of that, she had an appointment to go to. She started raising her voice while giving me suggestions. It sounded like she was yelling the orders over the phone. After I hung up the phone, our gracious host and a sweet lady, the director of the Washington District Library looked at me and said "How could she talk to you like that?" I smiled and said "Surely, she could. But I didn't have to listen. That's the privilege of being an unpaid volunteer."