In the spring of 2016, I set out to document homelessness on the streets of Buffalo NY. On my weekly outings with Gracepoint Alliance’s homeless outreach program, I met Matt and Kelly, a couple who were planning to get married despite their circumstances of being unsheltered. I admit that I was caught by surprise (after all, they were living in a large cardboard box behind a row of bushes near the Naval Park. It didn’t seem like the ideal time). But Matt and Kelly showed me that homelessness doesn’t completely douse hope or happiness. Their desire to be married spoke to a universal need for connection and and a willingness to commit. The photographs below document their wedding day.
Matt and Kelly meet at a hair salon where they will get their hair done for their big day.
Matt is making sure he has everything he needs to prepare for his wedding.
Kelly takes one last look before she has her hair washed and styled for her wedding.
Only thirty minutes to the ceremony, Kelly is frantically getting ready.
The Justice of the Peace in Buffalo NY will marry Matt and Kelly at 11:00am
Matt and Kelly nervously awaits to be called in for her wedding vows.
Exchanging of the vows.
Just married.
To see a slide show and hear Matt and Kelly tell their story click the link below http://www.photographybythomasmangione.com/homeless-project/