Robert X. Fogarty

Dear World’s method to capturing the iconic portraits they’ve become known for begins with a simple request: reflect on your life.

Its founder, Robert X Fogarty, is a journalist by training but never worked at newspaper, television, internet media company. But Dear World has become a well known way to tell significant, meaningful stories that has been published in more the 30 countries and has well over 100,000 participants. and founded Dear World in 2010 in New Orleans. That year, the city’s football team–the Saints–won the Super Bowl.

He’s now a sought after advisor to companies, non-profits and communities who recognize that the stories of their people are a part of their foundation. And his keynote speeches take the opposite approach to other speakers. He utilizes his time on stage to take people through process to reflect on the meaningful moments in their lives. Then after the speech he and his team stays to photograph the attendees with a symbolic portrait of the story.

He has worked with national championship basketball teams, fortune 100s and extraordinary non-profits. Clients include Duke University men’s basketball, Accenture, the Nobel Peace Prize forum. DearWorld.org, the 501c3 charitable arm of Dear World has worked with Syrian refugees, Boston Marathon bombing survivors, rescued child slaves and several other people’s stories whose legacy’s will be an enduring part of the historical record of our time.

One of his most memorable Dear World experiences is meeting a childhood hero of his–Stuart Scott–of ESPN. When asked what he wanted to share with the world, Scott said, ‘Can I write Ass on my arm?” Fogarty said, of course and Scott’s Dear World portrait ended up being the cover of his posthumous memoir. The work was also covered by Oprah on Super Soul Sunday.