{john mark mcmillan in concert}

this past friday night i got the awesome opportunity to see john mark mcmillan perform a free show at the visulite here in charlotte, nc.  seriously... his album hit #13 on itunes last week during it's release AND he plays free shows.  love this guy!  he's one of the few of us that can say we're true locals... born and raised... here in charlotte.  the hospital that he was born at, as well as myself, is truly a matter of yards away from the venue.  it was amazing and inspiring, to say the least, to see the local community's love and support blantantly expressed at his show!  to see john truly love the Lord through his music and not sell short, but hold strong to who he is as an artist is refreshing and i think everyone at the concert felt that.  here are a few of my shots and i got the whole (10 minute) of "How He Loves" on video.  notice how everyone was fully engaged in this song.  oh man, i LOVE live music! :)

John Mark McMillan - "How He Loves" - Live at the Visulite 7.9.2010 from April Walker on Vimeo.

{happy.wednesday}
aw

uptown charlotte, nc photography class shoot

last night marked week 6 of my photography class at the light factory.  despite the frigid temps, we headed out in uptown charlotte to practice some of what we've been learning.  i think i almost froze, but it was worth every minute!  i couldn't wipe the cheesy grin off my face the whole time. :) 

warning... lots of pictures ahead

{happy.wednesday}

aw

fascinating fog

isn't fog fascinating?!?

i stumbled across these pictures this

morning on the CLT Blog, via Dane Abernathy,

of the fog that rolled into uptown Charlotte today.

the "little" city of Charlotte that i grew

up with is not so little anymore

summer time baseball

last night i went with the fam to watch our local baseball team,

the charlotte knights. it was a perfect night for a baseball game!

we did a little tailgating before hand with the matthew's chamber of commerce.

here's dad & our newest employee dan!

niece#1 & niece#2 aka chip-a-holics!

the sister & her hubby

enjoying the game
niece#2 was absolutely TERRIFIED of homer, the mascot

niece#1 enjoyed every minute of it!

{sisters}

a great addition to uptown charlotte

i stumbled across the following article this morning

& think it's amazing addtion to our city!

click here to read it online

Uptown to get nonprofit restaurant
Staff may come from streets; proceeds will help the poor

07:32 AM EDT on Monday, June 2, 2008
By JEFF ELDER / The Charlotte Observer

CHARLOTTE, N.C. -- A renowned Charlotte chef and restaurateur plans to open a new place backed by top names. The venture is in good faith, but its never going to make money. And that's the point.

Jim Noble, the minister and chef behind the upscale Noble's and trendy Rooster's -- both in SouthPark -- plans to open a not-for-profit restaurant this winter in uptown Charlotte.

The King's Kitchen will employ, train and minister to troubled youth, graduates of rehabilitation programs and the unemployed. Noble also runs a nonprofit evangelical Christian organization and for years has fed the poor and held fundraisers at his restaurants.

Now, instead of giving a man a fish, he wants to teach him to fish. Or at least to serve it with a glass of sweet tea.

"My business and spiritual life go hand in hand," Noble says. "And one of the things I know is how to run a restaurant."

Noble plans to serve "local, healthy, comfort food at a medium price" at a to-be-determined location uptown beginning in the winter. "We'll have four or five meats and 10 or 15 vegetables," he says. Professional chefs will prepare the meals.

The King's Kitchen will serve "the best pan-fried chicken in the Southeast," says Noble, whose chicken dishes are a hallmark of Rooster's.

Noble foresees the place being open for lunch and dinner six or seven days a week.

You might not see much difference between the King's Kitchen and other down-home places. But the staff will include bus boys and waiters who might have recently been on the street, and the profits go to help the poor.

He says he needs $500,000- $600,000 to start the King's Kitchen. There is a similar restaurant in New Orleans called Café Reconcile, which Noble says helped serve as a model.

Charlotte's biggies are coming out to support the unusual venture: Honorary chairs include schools chief Peter Gorman and his wife, Sue. Panthers players and Coach John Fox are also helping out.

Cammie and Dee-Dee Harris, who have supported Charlotte charities with the fortune they made in Bojangles' and other fast-food franchises, are squarely behind Noble's effort.

"It's just the right thing to do," says Cammie Harris. "Jim is not your normal restaurateur. He's trying to help the people least fortunate in our city, and we want to help him."

Noble says giving the less fortunate a place to work will give them hope.

"Sometimes these folks have reached a place where God is all they've got," he says. There will be one key difference from many restaurants he says. "We won't serve alcohol."