Middleborough man displays his photos

A self-portrait of Greg Lessard, taken at the Grand Canyon.

A PHOTOGRAPHIC JOURNEY: When Greg Lessard of Middleborough picked up a camera in his 20s, his images “were terrible,” he admitted, making “friends and family groan when they saw me coming with a pile of photos.”

Now at 37, after studying the works of other photographers, including his father, Robert Lessard, he’s honed his skills and compiled photos for an exhibition of his work. “The Glory of Massachusetts: A Photographic Journey” will be at the Great Ponds Gallery at the Lakeville Public Library through Aug. 30.

The exhibit includes images from Cape Cod to the Berkshires, including what Lessard calls his most dynamic image, “Scituate Light – Heavy Surf,” a compelling shot of the shoreline near the lighthouse being pounded by waves as a nor’easter approaches. The presentation includes the stories behind each image.

“I picked up photography as a way to tell the stories of my latest adventures — hiking the White Mountains, Acadia National Park, rural farms in Vermont, and visiting circuses all over the country with my dad,” he said of Robert Lessard, 70, a freelance writer and photographer for “White Tops,” a circus magazine. “I was heavily influenced by my dad, who was a part-time newspaper reporter and photographer. He was always willing to explore new places, meet new people, and write about our adventures for the local papers.”

Greg Lessard, who is band director for the Scituate public schools, said, “My love for music dovetails perfectly with my love for photography. My visual studies of photography are simply an extension of my aural studies in music; they are very much related. Music and photography are simply two ways to tell a story and communicate emotions.”

Lessard said he sees himself as a landscape photographer, but he added, “Wildlife images and even wedding photography fascinate me. Basically, if I have a camera in my hands with something to tell a story about in front of me, I’m happy.”

View his photos at blog.greglessardphotography.com

JUDAISM LEADER SPEAKS IN SHARON: Joanna Kubar, president of Masorti Europe, an umbrella organization for conservative Judaism in 12 countries, will be the speaker at an educational program focusing on a new generation of European Jewry. The event is July 28 at Temple Israel of Sharon, starting at 7 p.m. The talk, sponsored by the temple brotherhood, is free but reservations are required. E-mail Mark Popovsky at [e-mail] or call 617-794-0400, or 781-784-3986.

Also speaking will be two leaders of a new Jewish activist group from Budapest, with whom members of the Sharon Jewish community have developed a special bond, said Ronald Czik, president of the temple brotherhood.

“Our goal is to educate the Greater Boston Jewish and general community about this aspect of the Hungarian Jewish community, and forge a closer connection,” Czik said.

Also joining the discussion will be Robert Leikind, director of the American Jewish Committee’s Boston chapter.

AREA COLUMNISTS WIN AWARDS: Columnists Suzette Martinez Standring of Milton and Michael Farley of Weymouth won first and third prizes, respectively, in a National Society of Newspaper Columnists writing competition. The categories was for online, blog, and multimedia columns with fewer than 100,000 unique monthly visitors.

Standring writes a spirituality column and blog, “Spiritual Café,” in The Patriot Ledger and is syndicated by GateHouse Media. Farley writes a blog, “Farley in Writing.”

BUSINESS BRIEFS: Employees of Southcoast Health System have been honored for reaching milestone years of service at the system’s three hospitals: Tobey Hospital in Wareham, Charlton Memorial Hospital in Fall River, and St. Luke’s Hospital in New Bedford. The annual recognition is a tradition in the company, said Keith A. Hovan, Southcoast president and CEO.

Recognized for 45 years of service were Myra Sweet of Freetown and Cynthia Ziewacz of Rochester.

Recognized for 40 years of service were Freetown residents Deborah Bolduc, Nancy Pequita, and Beverly Sadeck; Lakeville resident Marjorie Ashley; Rochester resident Frances Moszczenski; and Wareham residents Diane Allen, Christine Dacci, and Catherine Phinney.

Recognized for 35 years of service were Freetown resident Sandra Zager; Lakeville resident Catherine Breton; Rochester resident Sandra Marie Silva; and Wareham residents Joyce Holbrook and Peter Reed.

Peter G. Martin of Carver, vice president of business value solutions at Invensys in Foxborough, has achieved the ranking of ISA Fellow in the International Society of Automation, an organization of automation professionals. He was recognized for achievements in science and engineering, including his work in measuring business performance improvement. He will be honored at the society’s annual gala in November in Nashville. Among other awards and accolades, Martin was named one of Fortune Magazine’s Heroes of US Manufacturing” in 2002, and one of InTech magazine’s 50 most influential innovators of all time in instrumentation and controls.