Uncategorized

PHOTOS: A photographer’s picks of the most revealing, rewarding scenes of 2020

Pastor Jerry Miranda reunites with wife Teresa as she is wheeled out from Salem Hospital by certified nursing assistant Letty Fernandez. Teresa Miranda was discharged after battling a serious case of Covid on Thursday, April 2. (Amanda Loman/Salem Reporter)

This photo was from the first day I worked with Salem Reporter, and still sticks with me.

The pandemic was still in its early days in Oregon and it was rare to meet people who had overcome the virus. The Mirandas were so welcoming and kind, despite Teresa having just emerged from the hospital.

Months later, I was able to visit them at their home for a follow-up story by reporter Rachel Alexander, and it was encouraging to see how they’d been able to get back to normal.

Christy Perry, superintendent of the Salem-Keizer School District, stands for the pledge of allegiance at the beginning of a school board meeting on Tuesday, April 14. The meeting was live streamed to allow the public to join. (Amanda Loman/Salem Reporter)

As part of the “Leadership in the Pandemic” photo series, I spent time with Superintendent Christy Perry, who recently was named as a finalist for National Superintendent of the Year.

We spent the four hours that I was with her in basically two small rooms, while she went on a marathon spree of Zoom calls and phone calls, checking in with everyone from the school board members and leadership team to individual teachers who were also coping with the recent school closures.

Gov. Kate Brown works with communications director Natalie King to film a video message on the importance of voting for special education students at Ridgeview High School in Redmond on Monday, April 20. (Amanda Loman/Salem Reporter)

I was able to spend a half day photographing how Gov. Kate Brown and her office made do during the pandemic. And most of her day was centered around coping with the pandemic, but it was fun to see her take a moment to reach out to students and a reminder that there were still the usual tasks of governing on top of the complications brought by 2020. 

Oregon Health Authority Director Pat Allen takes a daily standing meeting with the Oregon Association of Hospitals and Health Systems on Monday, April 20. At the beginning of the Covid crisis, Allen held two daily meetings with the group but that has since been reduced to one. (Amanda Loman/Salem Reporter)

One of the challenges of the “Leadership in the Pandemic'”photo series, was that it was often just me and the leader, in this case Pat Allen, director of Oregon Health Authority, for several hours, in a very limited environment.

When you’re trying to make a photo essay out of one person in just one or two rooms, it helps to get creative and think outside of the action in front of you, so I was happy to spot this silhouette of Allen in a window in his office near the end of our time together. 

A woman sits on top of a vehicle as it passes in front of the Capitol during a rally in support of reopening Oregon and relaxing social distancing measures on Saturday, May 2. (Amanda Loman/Salem Reporter)

The Reopen Oregon rally in early May drew a crowd of several hundred people, and in trying to find quieter moments amongst the speakers and cheering, I noticed this woman on top of a vehicle in the line of traffic made up mostly of supporters in front of the Capitol. 

Scott and Connie Sorensen grab a drink at The Night Deposit Whiskey Library with their dog, Lucy, during the first phase of Salem’s reopening on Friday, May 22. The pair recently moved back to Oregon from Florida during the pandemic. (Amanda Loman/Salem Reporter)

As the state started to loosen business limits in May, there was a real sense of both caution and excitement as people were able to go back out and do all of the things they had missed. This couple moved back to Oregon during the pandemic and this was their first real chance to get out and experience the town again after being away for so long.

Madilyn McKenzie, 12, walks her sheep, Peter Pan, back into the barn on Wednesday, May 27, at the farm of a family friend where they house their animals outside of Jefferson. (Amanda Loman/Salem Reporter)

Madilyn and her sister, Hailey, were both 4-H participants who had the future of their hard work raising 4-H animals called into question as the Oregon State Fair and many local fairs canceled due to the pandemic and related restrictions. This photo sticks with me because it’s such an every day scene for so many people and also a reminder of how pervasive the effects of the pandemic have been.

Protesters light candles on the steps of the Capitol following a march to the site of the new Salem Police Department during the third night of demonstrations against police violence on Monday, June 1. (Amanda Loman/Salem Reporter)

This was a quiet moment after a peaceful march through downtown Salem. Most people had gone home for the night, but a small group remained on the steps of the Capitol, some putting together a small memorial of candles. 

Gregg Simpson, march organizer, addresses protestors during the March for Floyd on Saturday, June 6. (Amanda Loman/Salem Reporter)

This photo really captures the spirit of the protests in Salem for me: the emotion on Gregg Simpson’s face as he addresses protesters on the grounds of the Capitol, the signs and raised fists in the crowd. This event drew thousands of people and speakers and performances from so many different groups and perspectives.

Dressed in a mini cap and gown, Luis Torres, 18 months, greets mother Lupe following her graduation during the Early College High School and Roberts Teen Parent Program combined commencement ceremony at Sprague High School on Thursday, Aug. 6. (Amanda Loman/Salem Reporter)

I loved this moment, as Lupe Torres met up with her young son after her high school graduation. He was delighted to see her and they both looked picture-perfect in their matching caps and gowns.

A line of more than 175 people waiting to collect a one-time $500 relief payment wraps around the OnPoint Community Credit Union in West Salem on Thursday, Aug. 20.(Amanda Loman/Salem Reporter)

This was one of the sadder pandemic-related assignments for me. Hundreds of people were outside of these credit unions waiting for a relief payments, and there was just no way they would all get through the line before either the close of business or before the money ran out, leaving many of them in the same dire financial straits as before.

Austin Griffith, a medic with Woodburn Ambulance Service, administers a Covid test during a free drive-through testing clinic on Tuesday, Aug. 25. (Amanda Loman/Salem Reporter)

The family being tested in this photo had several young children with them in the car who also needed to be tested, causing Austin Griffith, heavily laden in PPE, to have to put in extra effort to coax the reluctant children into a test that’s uncomfortable for even adults. It felt like a look into the extra lengths that health care providers have to go through at every level to make sure they’re serving their community as best they can.

Jaime Lee, and daughter Reagan, 10, look through baskets holding lost and found items at Kalapuya Elementary School on Thursday, Sept. 3. (Amanda Loman/Salem Reporter)

The way that schools have had to adapt on-the-go to closings has been so interesting to see, and I really enjoyed the visual patterns in how this school approached reuniting lost items with students. The items were left behind when schools abruptly closed in March.

The Oak Park Motel sign in Gates on Wednesday, Sept. 9. (Amanda Loman/Salem Reporter)

This motel has become an iconic symbol of the fires in Gates, and the day that reporter Saphara Harrell and I were there, the fires were still active and you could feel a sense of unease throughout the area. The air was still thick with smoke and ash blew everywhere, it was a very apocalyptic atmosphere. This sign was photographed repeatedly by other journalists in the coming days.

Michael Chauran hugs Tasha Mack, whose family owns the property that Chauran and his wife Lori live on and that was burned in the fires, in Mehama on Wednesday, Sept. 9. (Amanda Loman/Salem Reporter)

When Saphara and I drove up to talk with the Chaurans, we had to pull around the driveway to avoid parking next to a fallen tree that was still burning. It was the first time the Chaurans returned to see the remains of their home since evacuating and they had had to take an injured family pet to be put down that morning.

Despite all of this, Michael and Lori were so kind and willing to talk with us about their experiences. I often think of the grace that it takes to let journalists into your lives during tragic events and I’m grateful to everyone, including the Chaurans, who let us spend time with them during the fires and their aftermath.

A utility box on the wall of a burned home in Gates on Sunday, Sept. 20. (Amanda Loman/Salem Reporter)

The small details of fire damage were endless, but the fires came through so quickly and so hot that in many cases there were no personal possessions left in the remains of these homes. In many cases, all that was left were the frames, bricks and foundations. 

Gordon and Jennifer Wentzel, of Salem sift through the wreckage of their destroyed RV along with son Cale, 8, in Detroit on Saturday, Sept. 27. (Amanda Loman/Salem Reporter)

Greg Wentzel, of West Salem, searches through the remains of his vacation home in Detroit with his children, Ozzy, 13, and Destiny, 8, on Saturday, Sept. 27. The family had just completed a five-year remodel of their home the week before the fire. (Amanda Loman/Salem Reporter)

In a complete coincidence, I ran into identical twin brothers at their respective properties in Detroit when the road into town opened up after the September wildfires. Both were going through the remains of their destroyed second homes. I first met Gordon Wentzel where he and his family were looking through their destroyed RV, and then later, stopped by another burned home that turned out to belong to Gordon’s twin brother, Greg. The brothers both had similar stories about evacuating from their homes the night the fires swept through Detroit.

Contact Salem Reporter with a news tip, story suggestion or question by emali to [email protected].

HELP SALEM GET THE FACTS. Covering your community with care and depth. Salem Reporter – fair, accurate, independent. Subscribe and support our local service: https://www.salemreporter.com/subscribe.