Brittany Parrish DeFrehn

Year First Awarded the Carson Scholarship: 1996

Brittany Parrish DeFrehn is a four-time Carson Scholar, first awarded in 1996 when she was in fifth grade. Having received the scholarship when she was ten years old, college was something that she had always looked forward to and she loved her time in school. Brittany attended McDaniel College where she double majored in political science and international relations, as well as triple minored biology, Spanish, and cross-cultural studies. During her time at McDaniel, she got the chance to go to Budapest, Hungary to study abroad before ultimately graduating in 2007.

After graduating from McDaniel, Brittany started working for the Presidential campaigns. She helped fundraise and analyze donations, filing reports with the Federal Election Commission (FEC), and assisting in advising the national finance director. While she was working on these campaigns, she received a camera from her neighbor and took up photography as a side-job.

Following the birth of her first daughter in 2011, Brittany became a full-time photographer. She has worked for HBO, photographed multiple heads of state, professional athletes, her favorite band… and she was even the wedding photographer for one of Dr. Carson’s sons! Her work has been published on CNN, Parents Magazine, Washington Weddings and more. Brittany shares, “I am the luckiest photographer, and I consider my lens like a passport into different people’s worlds. I have blessed to be part of some of the most intimate parts of people’s lives.”

In 2015, Brittany started Frederick Moms and Doulas, which supported moms through their pregnancy, birth, and postpartum journeys. She led a team of eight women and had an office in downtown Frederick that provided classes and support for moms. As a doula she was uniquely positioned to draw upon her love of science and educate women on the birth process, while also using her creativity to document their births with birth photography. Back in the early days of the Carson Scholars Fund, she had always said she would be a neurosurgeon and Dr. Carson joked she would have the office next to his. It was special that all her passions culminated in such a unique position in the hospital setting.

Unfortunately, with all the restrictions that were placed on hospitals in 2020 due to COVID, Frederick Moms and Doulas was shuttered. At this point, Brittany was a mom of four. During COVID, Brittany was concerned that her oldest daughter would fall further behind in school. Because of her eldest’s hearing difficulties, she had always struggled with school, and it was not an option for her to return to school with mask mandates. She made the decision to commit to their education. Her daughter, who had been behind two years, caught up in her education within six months. She currently homeschools all five of her children, still does photography on the side, and is the director of a classical micro-school, Saint Nektarios Schole, that is beginning in Fall 2026.

Brittany has always had a strong faith, even recalling that she read the whole bible at 11 years old. After her husband suffered from a stroke in 2022 and she saw how her kids came together to pray for their father, their family made the decision to become more involved in their church and converted to Eastern Orthodoxy. Brittany serves on the board for Christian Orthodox Mission Cameroon, which is an organization that builds wells in Cameroon. She has been married for 17 years to her husband Sean and has five children Adalynn (15), Shepherd (12), Deacon (9), Ellawren (7) and Amelianna (18 months).

Some fun facts about Brittany are that her favorite band has been and still is Hanson, and she loves their song “MMMBop”. She has attended over 30 of their concerts and somehow through God’s sense of humor, her youngest has Hanson godparents. Her two favorite books are “A Tale of Two Cities” by Charles Dickens and “Four Winds” by Kristin Hannah. She always has a book in her hand. She also enjoys watching women’s basketball, where her favorite team is Indiana Fever.

The Carson Scholars Fund has been a very important and impactful part of Brittany’s life. Having grown up raised by a single mother with limited resources, becoming a Carson Scholar brought her many opportunities. Receiving the scholarship helped her understand how important education is, and how it lends to the ability to walk into any room with confidence. She truly admires Dr. Carson and is extremely grateful for all the incredible things that the CSF has done for her. Her advice to our current scholars is, “Education is really a tool that helps you be able to walk into any room. My education (and God) is what has really helped me be successful at whatever I have wanted to do in life.”