Friday, May 22, 2009

Cox Newspapers Washington Bureau McKay015

A completely new resource for me is a six-year-old web effort at awarding honors for taking pictures on September 11, 2001, and its aftermath---The Best of Photojournalism 2002. The Internet Archive has never heard of these pages before, so I don't know when they went up online. Almost the whole batch is unfamiliar to me (and where they are familiar, they are all part of the same entry,) which leads me to think they are of recent public vintage.

This six-image entry is special in that it both announces an individual's authorial effort (Rick McKay, photo editor of Cox Newspaper's Washington bureau, and because all the entries bare some identification as to who is being depicted. Alas, none of the work is something other than hagiography. Rick McKay:
Rick McKay's duties include photographing Washington area people and events, handling special requests for photo coverage from individual newspapers and editing photos shot by the foreign staff.

He began his career as a staff photographer at the Hillsdale (Mich.) Daily News in 1976, then moved to the Battle Creek Enquirer and News in 1977 and became chief photographer in 1980.

McKay transferred to USA Today in 1983 as A-section photo editor and also photographed sports. In June of 1984, he joined the national staff of the Cox Washington Bureau, becoming the first photographer on the staff.

Besides his Washington work, he has photographed special projects around the country and abroad.


Russell Johnson fights back emotions as he stares at one of the thousands of tributes accumulating at a makeshift memorial on a hillside overlooking the charred gap where a jetliner hijacked by terrorists crashed into the Pentagon on Sept. 11. Three weeks after the attack, there is a steady stream of visitors to the hillside. Taking care to disturb nothing, they silently stoop to examine the items on the ground. Talk is scarce and muted.

A farewell note from a little girl named Faith to her dad is one of the thousands of tributes accumulating at a makeshift memorial on a hillside overlooking the charred gap where a jetliner hijacked by terrorists crashed into the Pentagon three weeks ago. "To Dad from Faith," the note began. "I love you Daddy. I miss you Daddy."

Ellen Hamblet, of Alexandria, Va, the pregnant wife of a Navy officer, brought daughters, Emily, 7, left, and Melissa, 3 to the hilltop memorial overlooking the damaged Pentagon. Their dad was in the Pentagon when the jetliner hit but was not injured, the mother said.

Marlene Bare stares at the Pentagon while Kay Kenzie, right, struggles to control her emotions while reading the messages on the bulletin board at the impromptu hilltop peoples memorial overlooking the damaged building. Bare's boyfriend, an Army lieutenant colonel, was working in the Pentagon on Sept. 11. She talked to him at 9:21 a.m., then he left his office for a meeting down the hall. His boss, a general, and 20 people in his office were killed when the jetliner hit, she said. But her boyfriend survived with a slightly injured leg.

The family of Army Specialist Chinsun Pak, who was killed in the attack on the Pentagon, comfort each other during a memorial service and prayer vigil near the Pentagon. From left, Pak's brother Chinsok Wells, mother Kumson Wells, Pak's fiancee Army Sgt. Chris McFarland, right, and father Norman Wells turning to talk to Pak's other brother Chinyong.

John Padla and Anna Deal of Tidewater, Va., look at one of the thousands of tributes accumulating at a makeshift memorial on a hillside overlooking the charred gap where a jetliner hijacked by terrorists crashed into the Pentagon Sept.11th . Three weeks after the attack, there is a steady stream of visitors to the hillside.

1 comment:

Datastic47 said...

Thank you for this post in regard to the "hilltop memorial" (and the bonus of a picture). This is the only site that I could find in regard thereto. My stepfather D.H. Cannon was contracted to construct the memorial board within days following the 9-11 attack. Sept 11th is my mother's birthday and the story of this temporary memorial was relayed to me this year - nine (9) years later. September 11, 2001: My mothers birthday, she and her husband, Donnie were making some plans for later which made him 15 minutes late for work. Donnie was headed to the Pentagon to inspect "corner guards" and meet site mgr. Danny Persinger at the south parking lot. D H Cannon construction had about 6 additional workers scheduled at the Pentagon that day, (none of whom were where they were supposed to be at that time). If Donnie and the rest of the crew had been on time that day, all would most likely not be alive today.