Several years ago, Christopher Blasewitz took up photography as a hobby after receiving a camera from his parents. Blasewitz is on the autism spectrum, and his parents thought the camera would help keep him occupied when they went out in public or were around a lot of adults. They didn’t anticipate their son’s natural talent for photography, or the passion for it he would develop.
“What really puzzled me was we could stand side-by-side and take the same picture with the same phone or camera - his was always better,” Jeanette Blasewitz, Christopher's mother, was quoted as saying in a report by Fox 9.com. “The lighting was better, everything was better. I have never understood why it was so."
Eventually, Christopher translated his developing photography skills into a business, using his photos to create greeting cards that he sold to friends and family. Not long after, Christopher’sfather was diagnosed with pulmonary fibrosis, a condition which makes it difficult for the lungs to receive oxygen. After his passing four years later, Christopher began donating the proceeds from his greeting card sales to the University of Minnesota to support researching a cure.Thus far, Christopher has raised about $2,000 for pulmonary fibrosis research. He explained that the cause is important to him on a personal level “because there is no cure and to me it’s life and death.”
"I'm really pleased Christopher has been able to take what he does well and turn it into something that is really making a difference," Jeanette was quoted as saying.
Those interested in ordering greeting cards can email her at jablas@aol.com, or Christopher at cablase@aol.com.