Whether you parent a child with a disability, have a disability yourself, work to advocate for those with disabilities, or feel drawn to social documentary photography, we encourage you to explore the stories we present on this site.

In 1995, photographer George Byron ("Geordie") Griffiths began a photo-documentary project about the lives of three children with disabilities. While working with Eric, Courtney, and Jon as a para-professional in a North-Central Minnesota elementary school, Griffiths began making black-and-white images to explore the ordinary moments in these children's lives. Those images, together with personal interviews which Griffiths is currently conducting, comprise “Children Born to Challenge: A photographic journey with three special-needs children and the families who love them.”

The project, now in its twelfth year, will result in a major exhibit of the photographs, and will be followed by the publication of a companion book. This exhibit and publication will welcome these young people into the larger community, making them visible in a society which often overlooks or marginalizes them.

These children are extraordinary gifts to the world. Here are their stories.