If the Completed Auctions on Ebay are any indication, I would not repair the camera even if parts were available. Instead, use the camera with the remaining card slot. When your grand-daughter gets the last little bit of good out of it, it will have served it's purpose well and can "rest in peace" in that place of honor where all cameras go to gather dust, the mantle.
As a side note, there are plenty of great starter cameras on sale right now. :)
I'm more sympathetic to the guy and his band that flew United from Halifax, Nova Scotia. There are three videos, funny to say the least. Google, "United Breaks Guitars". Just consider if it were your cameras, not his guitars. Of coarse, no one in their right mind would check cameras! But if you did, the videos will tell you what you have to look forward to. :)
Did you shoot it in RAW or JPG? Adobe Lightroom is easy to learn and will adjust what most photographer need to adjust. If the photo was taken in RAW, you could darken the sky bringing out any clouds or birds present and you could also brighten the shadow side of the face bringing out more detail in the hair. Cropping, color temperature changes, conversion to B&W, producing slide shows, sizing for the internet, printing and much more. Mac or PC, it's just easy.
Nice shot! Great memory for all involved.
I have had D700's and D750's, both converted to Infrared only. I much prefer the D750 for that purpose. In focusing off of the LCD on back of the cameras, the D750 allows the aperture of the lens to fully open to the largest f-stop. On the D700, the camera has to be "tricked" into opening to full aperture. For regular photography, not that much difference other than having two card slots and higher usable ISO. I think if i only shot landscapes the D810 (or the next iteration) might be the choice I would make.
There was a point in time that Nikon could not get enough parts out of Japan in order to supply their own repair needs. That's the time they stopped supplying outside repair shops. It had to do with floods, earthquakes and radiation back then. They still have trouble supplying batteries for their cameras.
I had the same problem with the first version of the AF-S 70-200 2.8 lens. It was the focus motor. If you plan to keep the lens, and it is a sharp lens, the repair will be worth it. The cost to repair my lens in October, 2014, was $550.00. I used Authorized Photo Repair in Morton Grove, IL and was without the lens for two weeks with UPS Ground shipping both ways. Good luck with your lens.
The only negative differences I can think of, if you want to call them that, is the D500 has no pop-up flash and uses two different memory cards (one SD and one XQD). You won't notice any real difference in the megapixels and everything else I see as positive. Right now there is a $200.00 INSTANT REBATE and a FREE BATTERY GRIP through December 31st.
Celebrate Bastille Day with the French on the Island of Saint Pierre located off the coast of Newfoundland. The holiday is on July 14th. Fireworks, music and dancing await your arrival. Don’t forget your jacket as the weather can be cooler than you expect, especially on the ferry boats. Watch for icebergs, whales and all manor of sea life.
Amen, bless you all for your service!