ANGEL GIRLS STORY…

One June day in 1999, Donna Spurgin and her friend were traveling in Ruidoso, New Mexico, and as the car climbed in elevation, the pair rounded a mountainside when they came to a clearing in the trees. Donna suddenly asked her friend to stop. The mountains extended into the distance, and she looked out onto the valley below. The sun’s setting rays dimly cascaded across the peaks, casting a hazy violet hue upon the range. “Wow. This is purple mountain’s majesty,” Donna reminisced. She snapped the photo. Her love for photography was born.

Donna has lived in North Texas her entire life. Donna started Angel Girl Photography in 2005 while she was working part-time. “My nickname for my granddaughter is Angel Girl,” she stated, and after photographing her granddaughter for years, the name was attributed to her new company.

The expansive landscape and small-town histories that she grew up around now inspire Donna’s photography. Alone or with her husband, she drives around North Texas or further, sometimes crossing state lines for art. When asked her how she chooses her subjects or where to photograph. “I just know,” she said. She most enjoys landscape, architectural, and street photography, hoping that people will recognize the beauty and splendor of the Lord in her shots.

When her home flooded in early 2020, she took a drive and asked “show me Your beauty, Lord.” She stopped at a church with a cross she’s always noticed. While sitting in the car editing her shots, a woman entered the cemetery, returning soon after, wiping tears from her eyes. Donna approached the woman. “There must be someone you love very much here,” she stated. After a brief exchange, Donna eventually texted the photo and some scripture to her new acquaintance and received a thank you. After church the next day, Donna received a heartfelt thank you from the woman, who explained how much the photo meant to her as well as the person buried in the cemetery. Donna reflects on how, at a moment she felt so low, God used her to bring a little bit of joy into someone else’s life, and she felt grateful that her photo could give that to someone.

Donna humbly and genuinely credits all of her photography to God. “He creates all the beauty; I just take pictures of it,” she said. When asked her if she has any plans or hopes for the growth of her business in the next year. She smiled and replied, “Oh, it’s all up to God. If I try and take control of His plan, I’ll just mess everything up.” With complete faith in His plan and hope that she might bring His power to others through her work, Donna glorifies God in Angel Girl Photography and everything she does.

Written by: Shannon Robinson - The Providence Village Experience