Last year, we shared the early stages of a photography project by Kathleen Dreier called Bus Stop Dreams—a series of photographs and interviews Dreier was doing with SunTran bus riders on their work, their lives and their dreams.

Dreier had shared on her blog her dream of bringing her photographs together in a book.

To make that happen, she recently launched a GoFundMe campaign with a $5,000 goal with $965 raised thus far.

From Dreier's campaign page:

I'm launching my first book called Bus Stop Dreams!
Would you please join me in making this dream a reality? You can PRE-ORDER your book right NOW just in time for my first official book-signing which will be held at Borderlands Brewery on Thursday, December 11th in Tucson, Arizona from 5pm to 9pm.

Bus Stop Dreams is a photography project I began in the summer of 2013 as a reminder to follow my own dreams of becoming a full-time life event photographer. I approached people at bus stops, asking them where they are going and most importantly, where would they like to go in their future. The participants' words are accompanied by portraits I took of them. Using public transit as a metaphor, Bus Stop Dreams is a book that I hope inspires all of us to create the life we wish to have both individually and collectively.

Dreier is one of those special Tucson people, a person long-admired for her dedication as a social worker, a single mom and helping many local organizations with her photography talent. She's must be doing something right. Here's her son's forward for her book that Dreier recently posted on her Facebook page:

Her son, Logan, a former El Grupo team member,

I asked my 18-year old son Logan, whom many of you know, to write the Forward to Bus Stop Dreams. In honor of a trip he is going on today for his education, I dedicate today's post to him.

Here is Logan's Forward to Bus Stop Dreams:

"My name is Logan Boyd, and I am the son of a dreamer. For eighteen years Kathleen Dreier single-handedly raised me while struggling to provide for the two of us with her social work job, as well as photography and essential oil businesses. But she did not start striving to achieve her own dreams until she was in her late 40’s. Watching someone so bravely attempt to make their dreams come true so late in the game, while juggling three jobs and being a single mother, has been incredibly inspirational to me. As a social worker, Kathleen has endured sights that are terrifying, brutal and scarring. Instead of allowing those scenes to take over her life, she was motivated to produce something inspirational. Over time, her experiences sparked an idea she calls Bus Stop Dreams.

This project reflects her strides to find her true calling, what she wants to do with her life and what she wants to contribute to the world. With Bus Stop Dreams, Kathleen gives the people of Tucson a voice, and she shows everyone that no matter who we are, beneath our exterior shell, we have a longing to achieve something. Where did we come from? Where are we going? These are the major questions one is posed with in life. Kathleen’s goal is to show that every being, despite their appearance, has an origin and a dream of the future

When we are born, some are blessed with more resources than others, and some must start with less. But if we take a second to find out about their origin and their dreams, we may just find someone that looks a lot like us on the inside. In this way we are all connected, and we all wait at the same station. This station at which we see the smiling faces in ads in the paper or on billboards, hearing the carefree laughs on the radio, thinking to ourselves, “what can I do to achieve this freedom; this dream life?”. So we get on the bus of ages, and on this bus we work and dream and sweat to create a reality for ourselves that we have countlessly dreamt of while asleep, and even while we work. For many of us, this bus ride can last a life time. For all of us, the work is tedious and tiresome, and the light at the end of the tunnel may seem dim. But the point is that there is light, and if we rub our eyes and look again, it is much brighter than we thought. This book, and project as a whole, is not simply about the dreams of a single, middle-aged mother with a low paying job, but of every man, woman, and child believing in the light and working to make their dreams come true.

As the son of a dreamer, it feels like every day that my mother tells me to do what I love and to give it my all. Because of her, I have no fear to dream. Every day I dream of my future. Like my mother I want to create something to inspire others to dream and to do; to help eliminate the fear that is so present in our society. If I had not had the image and support of such a strong mother, there is no telling where I would be at this point. But one thing is certain, without my mother, the light at the end of my tunnel would be far duller.

I am forever in your debt, Mom, and I will never forget the work that has gone into raising me. I, and the rest of Tucson thank you for believing in yourself and in us."

Logan Boyd
11/02/14