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Even then, I stayed focused on getting 'the picture'. I focused
on how to best tell our readers through my pictures, what had
happened to so many people. Nine are dead...Mothers, fathers,
children, a next door neighbor. Gone forever. And I was focused.
Focused on getting what I needed. Focused on doing my job. Focused
on doing a good job and pleasing the editors. More than 300 homes
are gone. Almost as many families torn apart....and I was there.
But today is Sunday..and I have realized, truly realized what
has happened. I have neglected my family the past week. Homes
within 200 yards of where I am a father and husband, are gone.
My wife spent part of Wednesday and Thursday in a closet with
my two-year old. A bicycle helmet on his head for protection.
I cannot get the sirens out of my head, or the look of horror
that my wife, son, and so many people through this community had
on their faces this week.
But it's my job right? This is what we live for..right? Right!
But there is a price. Driving back from a church service held
in a community center this morning..it hit me. The congregation
held a service because their church had been destroyed, along
with the life of a member. I was at the church the night it was
hit. Twenty people walked away..one life lost. Anyway, on the
way back to the news room, I passed one of the places hit in town
(it's hard not to do that..so much of the city has been hit) and
began to cry. It had sunk in.
My message is this. Before we are photographers.. we are husbands,
fathers, wives, sons, daughters, friends, girlfriends and boyfriends.
We are human. We cannot just hide behind our cameras all of the
time. We must remember that our families do come first when devastation
hits home. This is not an opinion. This is a fact. This is the
way we all must be to do our jobs effectively. We must help those
in need, but not always by taking pictures to tell a story. Sometimes
a helping hand or a shoulder to cry on for a neighbor and friend
makes more of a difference in someone's life than seeing their
picture on the front page of the newspaper.
Thank you..and God Bless the people of Jackson Tennessee.
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Residents leave an apartment complex in Jackson,Tn.,
Monday morning after the city condemned the structure. A Sunday
evening tornado ripped through the city, leaving at least nine
dead. The Jackson Sun/Chris Stanfield
Residents of the Orchard Hill subdivision in Jackson TN, fight
back tears after seeing the damage to their homes for the first
time since Sunday evening when a severe tornado sent most of them
running for shelter elsewhere. Local and state officials kept
residents out until about noon on Monday, sweeping the area and
checking for other victims. At least 8 people have been confirmed
dead. The Jackson Sun/Chris Stanfield
Residents of the Orchard Hill subdivision in
Jackson, TN,began the task of sifting through personal belongs
scattered across neighborhoods on Monday Jan., 18,1999. The subdivision
is believed to be the worst hit by a Sunday evening tornado that
swept across the region. The Jackson Sun/Chris Stanfield
A family picture is caught on the barbed wire surrounding Edith
Evans home in Blue Goose, TN, on Monday Jan. 18,1999. Evans lost
her life after a tornado swept throughout
the region on Sunday evening. The Jackson Sun/Chris Stanfield
Jason Lonon of Jackson stands in his bedroom
where his bed was when Sunday night's tornado ripped through his
home in Jackson. 'I'm lucky to be
alive,' Lonon said. The Jackson Sun/Chris Stanfield.
Linda Moling, left, and Diann Spaeth console
one another at Sundays informal church service held at the south
Jackson community center in Jackson. The two are members of the
people chapel church located off of grove road in s. Jackson,
where one person was killed when last Sunday's tornado demolished
the church's building.
Sad and a little embarrassed, tornado victims
poured in to an American Red Cross shelter in Jackson, swallowing
their pride to seek food and shelter after yet another long night
of sever weather. The Jackson Sun/Chris Stanfield.
John Emerson sifts through the twisted metal
of his neighbors yard, trying to salvage what he can in Jackson,
Tenn., on Tuesday, Jan. 26,1999. Ever since last Sunday's (Jan
17,1999) tornado struck Jackson , victims have been swarmed with
help from friends and volunteers from all over the country, lending
a hand to those who need it. THE JACKSON SUN / CHRIS STANFIELD
A woman, who did not wish to give her name, tries
to salvage what she can out of her brother's kitchen in Jackson,
TN, Monday Jan. 18,1999. A strong tornado ripped through the city
and some of the region around 6:30 Sunday evening, leaving at
least nine dead and several missing. The Jackson Sun/Chris Stanfield
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