One year in.

2022 marked my first anniversary as a staff photographer and multimedia journalist at St. Louis Public Radio. If I had a nickle for every time people still ask me how we put pictures on the radio... I would have a lot of nickles.

There were many milestones for our organization this year I'm proud to have helped spearhead of including publishing our first Spanish-language audio report alongside our education reporter Kate Grumke, pushing a major capital campaign to help save migratory birds, and diving deep in creating opportunities to provide mentorship while emphasizing diversity, equity and inclusion in the journalism industry.

STLPR realunched the St. Louis Public Radio Teen Photojournalist Prize, a program honoring local high school students visual storytelling and bringing educational resources to help them advance in their skillset. We also hosted our inaugural NPR Next Generation Radio Project designed to help strengthen the public media pipeline through an intensive 5-day hands-on multimedia reporting project with local students.

Aside from organizational milestones, there are a few moments I was pretty darn proud of inlcuding having my first live television hit for The Weather Channel after historic flooding in St. Louis last summer, having my first national feature run on NPR's All Things Considered, and getting some of my work recognized by the Society of Professional Journalists and the Public Media Journalist Association on top of our team winning a regional Edward R. Murrow Award. But, at the end of the day it's not about the recognition — it's about the people at the center of it all.

Whether it’s the seismic ripples of a policy change, unexpected weather phenomena, or everyday moments in your community — visual journalists are there document the humanity behind the words you read and hear, including the unexpected or resoundful.

The work you see here is a curated collection of moments from the last year; some beautiful, like a young family exploring a golden field of sunflowers on a warm summer morning, and others challenging like the rippling impact of a school shooting that left two dead. The Supreme Court's overturning of Roe v. Wade raised questions of what's next for the region's access to abortion care and voters in the 2022 Midterm election decided who will shape our policies moving forward.

Below you will find the stories behind the photos from those and many quieter moments that made 2022 a year to remember.

A few of my memorable stories from the last year:

‘How do we keep Lela safe?’ Schools turn scary for high-risk kids with COVID mask mandates gone
At Trump rally for Miller, Illinois Republicans tout ending Roe
In one southern Illinois town, residents grapple with abortion's past and future
After rushing to safety, St. Louisans wonder how they will recover from historic flooding
Chocolate, tamales and pulque: St. Louisans honor deceased at Day of the Dead public altar
St. Louis soccer fans turn out in droves for Qatar's 2022 FIFA World Cup