By the time 2006 arrived, scrapbooking related activities were almost non-stop. I’d been fortunate enough to travel around the country to many exciting events with Renee. During that time I’d gotten to meet and spend time with many talented industry personalities. It seemed that scrapbooking was booming everywhere. Imagine my feeling of total amazement and glee when Renee was invited to demonstrate digital techniques at the Scrapbook Expo during the Scrapbook Convention in Johannesburg, South Africa. From what I could gather, Scrapbook Convention was one of the most high energy shows anywhere, but for sure on the African continent. We would certainly find out, but for me what kept running through my mind was that “Renee was going international.”  

Even though my trip expense was not covered in the offer to Renee, I was happy to pay it. This would be our first trip to Africa, and we’d be making the trip with a group of industry professionals that I’d get to know. And to top it off, several days in Cape Town and a real safari was included.

Renee’s trip was supported by Epson, which meant that she would be in the center of things. Epson was the major single sponsor of the event at that time. Plus Renee’s first book had just been released and the publisher had provided copies of the book to be given away at the event. While the vast majority of attendees were paper scrappers, there was a considerable amount of interest in her digital demonstrations, presentations, and her book. The energy level of the attendees was at a very high level. Digital was starting to emerge in scrapbooking, even in S. Africa.

The experience of being in S. Africa was itself a major growth experience in so many ways. The country is extremely beautiful. The sites are spectacular.  However, it is a very different culture. There is a dramatic gap between those who have much and those who have very little, and there is very little in between.  While Apartheid had been outlawed after a long and bloody struggle, race relations and interactions were dramatically different from what I’d experienced in the USA or Europe.  It wasn’t awful, just different.

The time spent with the industry professionals, our time together in Cape Town, and the Safari were the highlights of the trip for me. Those experiences answered so many of my questions about this industry, the professionals in it, their motivations, and in seeing the world though their eyes. In part 2 of The First Great Adventure I’ll share some of the hundreds of pictures taken during out time together and a few of my thoughts on my experiences with them.

See you next time.

Kent Pearson

Kent is the husband of Renee Pearson and a silent partner at reneepearson.com. He spent 34 years as a salesman and sales manager at IBM and Lexmark International.

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Tags: Tales of a scrabooking groupie