Operation Photo Rescue Sends Photo Restoration Team to Nashville

Belmont University hosts team on campus
Operation Photo Rescue (OPR), a global not-for-profit organization, gathered a team of volunteers at Belmont University last week to digitally copy family photos damaged during recent flooding.
Hosted by Belmont, the OPR team set up operations at the University Ministries office at 1900 Belmont Blvd. on Fri., Sept. 10 and Sat., Sept. 11 with hours of operation both days from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. The event was organized by Belmont Associate Professor of Sociology Dr. Andi Stepnick and University Ministries. Nashville residents with photos damaged during 2010 flooding were able to bring in up to 20 images to be restored free of charge. Those images that can be repaired will be digitally copied and later restored, printed and mailed back to the image owners at no cost.
Since OPR was founded in the wake of Hurricane Katrina in January 2006, the organization has grown into a network of over 2,000 volunteers. Volunteers come from all 50 states and from 49 other countries. OPR volunteers have restored and returned over 6,000 damaged photos to date for victims of hurricanes, floods, wildfires and other disasters.
“We’ve had an unbelievable outpouring of support from volunteers who have joined our cause from all over the world,” Dave Ellis said, Co-Founder of Operation Photo Rescue. “What started out as two people trying to make a small difference has turned into a global effort that has helped more people than we ever thought possible.”
When disaster strikes, people often try desperately to retrieve their family photos, Ellis said. “Insurance doesn’t replace memories,” he said, “but we do.”
Click here to see more photos from the event.