Chris Gilbert

My name is Chris Gilbert, and I’m raising funds to help my sister-in-law, Aga, and her mother following the recent passing of Aga’s father, Jan Gomoła, in Tarnów, Poland. For more than half a century, Jan Gomoła preserved memories through his photographs. Now his family needs help returning to Poland to honor his memory and say goodbye. Our family is asking for help following the death of Jan Gomoła, beloved father of Aga and my late wife, Beata, and a respected photographer and teacher whose work became part of the visual history of Tarnów, Poland. Jan was born in Kraków in 1945 and devoted much of his life to photography. After becoming professionally connected with Tarnów in the 1970s, he spent decades teaching photography at the Pałac Młodzieży and became deeply involved in the city's photographic community. He was a longtime member of the Tarnów Photographic Society and later served as its president. He taught generations of young photographers, organized exhibitions, participated in photography competitions and juries, and created an extraordinary body of work of his own. Jan photographed architecture, portraits, everyday life, reportage, and the changing face of Tarnów. Over the years, he created thousands of images that preserved people, places, moments, and a city that continued to change around him. A recent remembrance of Jan described him not simply as an accomplished photographer, but as a teacher and a man of extraordinary sensitivity—someone who understood that photography was about more than operating a camera. It was about noticing the things others might overlook and preserving them for the future. His contributions to photography and the cultural life of Tarnów were recognized with numerous honors, including the Bronze Cross of Merit, a medal for service to Tarnów, and the Medal "For Merit to Polish Photography." But to us, Jan's most important role was much simpler. He was family. He was a father. Jan was the father of my sister-in-law, Aga, and my wife, Beata. Our family has already experienced devastating loss this year with Beata's passing. Now, only a few months later, Aga has lost her father as well as her sister. Aga and her mother live in Maryland, more than 4,000 miles from Tarnów. They are now faced with the enormous emotional and financial challenge of returning to Poland on very short notice. Jan's funeral is scheduled for October 7 in Tarnów, making the need especially urgent. This trip is not simply about attending the funeral. Aga and her mother must also deal with everything Jan has left behind. His home needs to be cleaned out, his belongings and personal effects need to be handled, important paperwork and administrative matters must be addressed, and his final affairs in Poland must be settled. Among those belongings is the work of a man who spent much of his life preserving memories for others—photographs representing decades of Jan's life and the history he documented. The cost of international travel on short notice, combined with lodging, transportation, funeral expenses, and the costs associated with handling Jan's home and final affairs, is more than Aga and her mother can manage on their own right now. We are raising funds to help with: Last-minute airfare from Maryland to Poland Lodging and transportation while they are in Poland Funeral and memorial-related expenses Cleaning out and taking care of Jan's home Handling, protecting, and organizing his belongings Administrative expenses associated with settling his final affairs Other unexpected costs that arise while they are in Poland Our goal is to take away at least one burden from a family that has already endured an extraordinary amount of loss. We want Aga and her mother to be able to return to Poland, stand with their family, honor Jan's life, take care of what he left behind, and say goodbye without having to wonder how they will pay for everything. Jan spent much of his life capturing moments so they would not be forgotten. Now we are asking for help making sure his family can be there to honor the man behind those photographs. Every donation, no matter the amount, will help. If you cannot donate, please consider sharing this fundraiser. We would especially be grateful if it could reach those in Tarnów and elsewhere who knew Jan, studied photography under him, worked alongside him, attended his exhibitions, or simply appreciated the images through which he documented his city. To everyone who has reached out, donated, shared this fundraiser, or offered a kind word to our family: thank you. Your support means more than we can express. In memory of Jan Gomoła — father, teacher, photographer, and a man who spent a lifetime preserving memories for others.