She said "yes"

I was having a glass of wine with friends at Les Bourgeois winery along the Missouri River this evening when I turned around to see a man named Karl propose to his girlfriend just feet from my table. She said "yes," as you can see.

I'd like to thank Karl for popping the question at sunset. I'd like to thank Sarah Flagg for jabbing me in the ribs and telling me to turn around.

Rwandan renewal

Marianne Bihomora dreamed of being married in a church ever since she and her husband, Stanislas, who is known as Stani, were wed in a small civil ceremony two decades ago. Since then, lack of money, turmoil in her homeland of Rwanda, life in a Kenyan refugee camp, resettlement in the United States and raising their six kids put the dream on hold. But when Marianne's 70-year-old father, Michel Mumyantarama, came to Columbia from Rwanda in August... it finally seemed like the right time...
Excerpt from story written by Christine Martinez for The Missourian. Martinez spearheaded a multi-media project, shooting photos, gathering sound and producing A wedding 20 years later. I helped with a few photos.

First rodeo

Jenahlyn Felten, 15, prepares her horse Montana for the Missouri High School Rodeo's Barrel Jackpot on Wednesday, June 17, 2009, at the Boone County Fairgrounds. She's been riding since she was 7 years old and has been competing for a few years. "It's hard work, but I like the training," she said.

These ran in The Missourian.

Columbia Curfew?

The city of Columbia is considering a curfew for teens. Anthony Chavez, 12, and Alex Terrell, 13, live in nearby Ashland, Mo., where children under 17 cannot be in public between midnight and 5 a.m. The two agree with the curfew, saying it keeps teens safe.


Joseph Boettcher, 12, (left) and Hayden Mahieu, 15, play at the Virtual Arena on Thursday, June 11, 2009. The two are neutral about a potential curfew for teens in Columbia.


Larry Green, 15, says there should be no curfew in Columbia. He was hanging out with friends on Park Ave. on Thursday, June 11, 2009.

The first two photos were published in The Missourian.

First flash

Columbia Police Officer Keisha Edwards speaks with Tyler Stone (right) and Keith Ramsey after the first night of Moonlight Hoops at Douglas Park. The Columbia Police Department will be on site for the summer-league games. "It's community policing at its best," Edwards said. "It's an opportunity to interact with the community, giving them an opportunity to interact with us, building relationships."

This was my first attempt shooting with flash on assignment for The Missourian.

Dugout duds

Mizzou Tiger Katie Milles dons her catching gear during a double-header against Missouri S&T. On April 15, 2009, the Tigers won both games: 10-2 in six innings and 6-0.

This was one of my first attempts at shooting sports. Still working at it.

Two pals

Jeffrey Wold Lynch waits for his turn to sip while his friend “Diamond” Dave Tye drinks alcohol in Downtown Columbia, Mo. The two describe themselves as homeless and say they sleep on the streets because the local shelters have too few beds. Lynch and Tye timed their sips strategically, waiting for acquaintances to walk further down the block before pulling out the bottle. “We don’t mind sharing, but we can’t feed the whole world,” Lynch said in February 2009.

New faces

Sandar Thang, 27, is a refugee from Myanmar, the Southeast Asian country the U.S. State Department refers to as Burma. When she posed for this portrait, she, her husband and her infant son had been in their new home of Columbia, Mo., for one month.

They moved to Columbia about the same time I did. I met them randomly on the street, and she graciously posed for this photo. I brought copies of this and images I made of her husband and infant to their home several weeks later. They introduced me to more refugees from Burma/Myanmar. There are more than 60 in mid-Missouri.


Josh Vest, 22, tries to keep his fingers warm by cupping them around a cardboard cylinder of coffee. “It’s hard to keep a job while you’re traveling,” he explained, posing for this portrait. He and his traveling companion, Samantha Eveland, were in Columbia, Mo., on their way to his home state of Texas.

Making these portraits was part of my first assignment in the photojouranlism graduate program at the University of Missouri-Columbia. Taking my camera to the streets helped me break through a membrane of doubt. Thank you, David Rees.