a.t.

::Dave Matthews Band::

2009-04-22T11:49:00.000-07:00

::NASCAR::

2009-04-22T11:44:00.000-07:00

::portraits::

2009-04-22T11:43:00.000-07:00

Mark Johnson has a portrait of every US president in the office of his tire shop.

::polo...indoors::

2009-04-22T11:41:00.000-07:00

::C'Ville::

2009-03-26T20:18:00.000-07:00

::box::

2009-03-13T13:50:00.000-07:00

what's that on his necklace? oh, that's his wedding ring and his little finger...that he cut off himself about a year ago.

::city chickens::

2009-03-02T18:38:00.000-08:00

I spent a recent afternoon with these great kids and their funny feathered friends.

::learning to::

2009-02-28T16:50:00.001-08:00

...belly dance.

::game on::

2009-02-28T15:10:00.000-08:00

been shooting some basketball. they're in black and white because.

::stepping::

2009-01-27T10:45:00.000-08:00

Step & Dance Competition at MLK Performing Arts Center

I recorded some of the stepping to put into a slide show. My audio equipment isn't great, so excuse the sound quality...I'm working on it.

::inauguration::

2009-01-27T08:58:00.001-08:00

I covered the inauguration viewing at John Paul Jones Arena in Charlotteville. I'm sure it was tame compared to the D.C. festivities, but I found it remarkable how many people wanted to be around other people in their community for this event - the fact that people lined up early in the cold to get into the arena to watch the swearing in shoulder-to-shoulder with strangers, was very moving.

::meetings::

2009-01-27T08:33:00.000-08:00

I've heard many photographers groan when they have to cover a local meeting, but I'm a sucker for photographing a good meeting. There is something timeless about community meetings - in an age where people can organize themselves online, I like the fact that people still gather around a table and talk to other people in their community about issues.

Here are a few pics from a meeting at the Virginia Organization Project - the topic of the meeting was restoring voting rights to former felons in Virginia. Virginia and Kentucky are the only two states that don't automatically restore voting rights to ex-felons. The top photo is of the meeting organizer, Harold Folley.

::Mr. Williams::

2009-01-27T08:23:00.000-08:00

I spent about an hour with Eugene Williams last week. What a great hour it was. Williams is a proponent of making affordable housing available in buildings throughout town as opposed to being limited to large, isolated blocks of housing. "The key principle that I've kept in mind was [that] we wanted to rehabilitate the property but also rehabilitate the people in the neighborhood,” said Williams, “I feel so strongly about Section 8 that I am not going to turn them down for any reason.”

UVA vs. Rider U.

2009-01-03T19:45:00.000-08:00

waiting out the clock in the last 30 sec. of the game...UVA 83, Rider 38.

::tanzania photos...finally::

2008-12-04T11:19:00.000-08:00

Dar es Salaam airport

Fish Market, Zanzibar

We were introduced to the game of Bao and spent a few nights on the roof of our guest house trying to figure out how to play it.
Me in a guest house mirror.
Brandt at the Dar es Salaam airport.
Rooftops of Zanzibar.
Spiders in the park in Stone Town.

Looking for spices.
Kids diving from the road to the sea.
We took a 3 hour tuk-tuk to a beach on Zanzibar.

Zanzibar Coffee House.

spices.
Soccer on the beach, Stone Town
Movies premiering at the Zanzibar International Film Festival (ZIFF).
Closing ceremonies of ZIFF.
Water Buffalo in Ngorongoro Crater.
Lion, Tarangire National Park
Brandt, ready for Safari
Lake Manyara NP

Brandt reading his Swahili textbook on a very windy night on Kilimanjaro.
We didn't see the summit of Kili for our first few days. Then, on the eve of the third day, the clouds were below us and we got our first peek at the summit.

...the trail
Campsite visitor on Kili.

Brandtly & I went to Tanzania one our one-year anniversary/honeymoon.

::Thanksgiving in Tenn.::

2008-11-28T16:52:00.000-08:00

the iphone, bringing families together. Brandt & Connor play air hockey on the phone.
Brandt & Nick

still life with 1/2 a duck

Connor & Jeffrey

this is maddie.

maddie pretends she's flying in the back of Nick's pickup.

::the fourth::

2008-07-09T16:44:00.000-07:00

i spent the fourth of july on a historical farm shooting part of a story about things to do with the family on the fourth.

::detail = distraction::

2008-07-08T16:42:00.001-07:00

...photographing a story about how high gas prices are affecting businesses on a lake in the county. the details on the docks offered a great distraction as i waited for boaters to come and go.

...high gas prices, woo-hoo for sailing!

::butterflies::

2008-07-02T12:07:00.000-07:00

...a bucket full.

::empty::

2008-06-26T14:46:00.000-07:00

...bummer.

I was shooting an Irish Dancing Class--they had lots of energy, mine was waning. I turned around to see this row of empty coffee pots on a random stove in the back of the room.

::simple::

2008-06-19T10:37:00.000-07:00

things were seeming really complicated last week so i decided to simplify when shooting this portrait

::Gooch's::

2008-06-19T10:27:00.000-07:00

...Gooch's Garlic Run...

::weather::

2008-06-19T10:22:00.000-07:00

::little league::

2008-06-17T20:42:00.001-07:00

::graduation v. 2.0::

2008-06-17T20:16:00.001-07:00

...a couple snaps from a graduation on Friday.

::chase::

2008-06-12T16:38:00.000-07:00

::audience::

2008-06-12T16:36:00.000-07:00

press conference, Splitrock Reservoir

::over::

2008-06-12T16:35:00.000-07:00

::the middle::

2008-06-12T16:33:00.000-07:00

::fans, feathers::

2008-06-12T16:31:00.000-07:00

::last out::

2008-06-12T16:30:00.002-07:00

::montessori::

2008-06-12T16:30:00.001-07:00

::tune::

2008-06-12T16:25:00.000-07:00

::believe::

2008-06-12T16:21:00.000-07:00

lining up for graduation graduation procession

::we're walking, we're walking...::

2008-05-18T13:44:00.001-07:00

LPGA Sybase Classic in Clifton - the top pic is a local golfer that we follow each year through the tourney. the bottom is of Annika Sorenstam, the leader during the first round.

::a work in progress::

2008-05-18T13:17:00.001-07:00

Despite the fact that I already defended, I've been working to make suggested changes to my MA project. It still needs editing, I know. I think I will need to come up with an MA project version and a less bulky possible publication version.

www.ashleytwiggs.com/formychildren.html

::track::

2008-05-08T18:18:00.000-07:00

for the triple jump, i always get photos like the one above. sometimes there is only sky, sometimes there is less sky, the expression of the athlete changes, but basically it is the same photo. below is the "hop" portion of the triple jump and my attempt to get a different photo of the event...it isn't perfect, but i'm going to start trying to work with this idea to get different angles on the events. this kid broke a meet record in the photo below.

::another portrait::

2008-03-27T17:29:00.001-07:00

::crosswalk::

2008-03-21T18:20:00.001-07:00

::portraits::

2008-03-21T17:37:00.001-07:00

::i'm old::

2008-03-20T19:31:00.000-07:00

::St. Pat's::

2008-03-18T12:16:00.000-07:00

Wrestling State Finals in Atlantic City

2008-03-08T12:08:00.000-08:00

the warm-up mats in the morning

check back later, the semis are tonight, consulations and finals tomorrow...that's a lot of wrestling for one weekend, eh?

::Flatt::

2008-02-08T10:30:00.001-08:00

Mr. Flatt waits for the Homeless Solutions van under the awning of a church door on The Green in Morristown on an icy day in Morris County.

::go Giants::

2008-02-02T16:44:00.000-08:00

Between assignments on a particularly colorless Saturday morning in Morris County I saw Alice pushing a shopping cart containing one grocery bag along the road. Pulled over a few blocks ahead and walked back to take her photo. After snapping a few frames, I crossed the street to ask her name. "This cart sucks," she told me before I had the chance to introduce myself. Then she just started talking. "I used to climb that tree over there...can't climb trees anymore...do you have a boyfriend?...went to buy postage stamps at the A & P it is the only place in town that sells stamps that I know of because I can't walk to the Post Office...do you go to Morristown High School?...I got some wine for watching the thing tomorrow...get to see Manning and what's that other guy's name? Brady." Then she stopped and asked me, "Do you go to college?" I told her that I already went to college, to which she replied in a blatantly mocking tone (the way a kid on the playground would mock another), "I already went to college." We talked a bit more, she gave me her name (I asked for it) and her address (I didn't ask for it) and her age which she reiterated by displaying 8 fingers and then made the "0" sign. Waving goodbye as I crossed the street, I looked back to see Alice smiling and waving, "Don't get drunk," she yelled to me. Good advice.

::filming::

2008-01-19T11:28:00.001-08:00

...making movies in Morris County...

::it's a small world::

2008-01-19T11:27:00.001-08:00

::boxing::

2008-01-15T21:18:00.001-08:00

boxing event from a while back...with the volume that we shoot at a daily paper, it's amazing how quickly we have to be able to swing from one thing to the next. i think that i had 4 assignments on the day that i shot this boxing event. i'd completely forgotten that i was even there.

::opinions::

2008-01-13T08:41:00.000-08:00

Children's Circus

Any opinions on which of the spinning plate pics?

::always the photographer, never the patron::

2008-01-09T15:21:00.000-08:00

Lately, I spend a lot of time photographing in restaurants for the newspaper. After almost every one, I think, "I'll come back soon with my husband and enjoy a leisurely night out." Never happens.

This is an accidental shot of me at one of the many eateries...

::reach::

2007-12-19T18:10:00.000-08:00

::prep football::

2007-12-13T11:25:00.000-08:00

::vishnu::

2007-12-13T11:23:00.000-08:00

::santa's garden::

2007-12-06T18:55:00.000-08:00

::luncheon::

2007-12-05T13:02:00.001-08:00

::thanksgiving at the mission::

2007-12-05T08:32:00.000-08:00

::soccer::

2007-12-05T08:29:00.000-08:00

::waves::

2007-12-04T19:32:00.000-08:00

::FB Player of the Year::

2007-11-29T20:02:00.000-08:00

::archives::

2007-11-27T20:10:00.000-08:00

Left to right, Sister Theresa from Malawi, Sister Maria from Vietnam, and Sister Margaret from Kenya wait for gusts to arrive for the Commencement at Assumption College.
..searching for certain parts of the border between Canada and the U.S. last summer while at the CS Monitor...

::the holiday season begins::

2007-11-24T14:14:00.000-08:00

..before the annual holiday parade...

::crossing [a bit of] country::

2007-11-17T12:29:00.001-08:00

The girl in the center is one of our county's best runners. Her team took second in the state meet today.
spectators 1
the course...waiting for the race to begin...
spectators 2
girls championship runners come across the field...
waiting in the chute for the first finishers...a cold, beautiful day. hello Fall. it's about time.
crossing the line...

State Cross Country Championship in Holmdel

::men on walls::

2007-11-15T19:12:00.000-08:00

i photographed Madeleine Albright tonight. during the interview she spoke a lot about women's roles in the world. she also mentioned, "there is a special place in hell for women that don't help other women."

as i was walking out of the building, i noticed how many men lined the walls at the university. there were some portraits of women, but there were a lot of men...

::Visitor::

2007-11-15T13:46:00.000-08:00

::reflections::

2007-11-13T12:13:00.000-08:00

election night.

::drill::

2007-11-03T21:43:00.001-07:00

::focus::

2007-11-03T21:37:00.000-07:00

we were out on the tarmac for a while for the Emergency Response drill and it got pretty dark so the photo ops were limited. at times like this, i have a hard time keeping focussed. my thoughts drift to the three assignments that are waiting to be edited, captioned, and filed by that night's deadline or more immediately, on the cold wind coming across the runway. so, to keep myself focussed i tried to make circles out of the ambulance lights. the last one got pretty close...

::because it's pretty::

2007-11-03T21:13:00.000-07:00

tonight i photographed an emergency response drill at the airport for a fellow DR photographer who broke his hand at an afternoon field hockey game (he got hit by the ball). they shut down the airport and dropped us way out on the tarmac to watch the chaos ensue. the emergency drill scene was facing the other direction, but the sky was putting on quite a show.

hope your hand is on the mend and you back out on assignment under pretty skies again soon, jim!

::cross-counrty weather?::

2007-11-03T21:00:00.001-07:00

photographed the NJ cross country sectionals today. the photos of the actual runners will be put up later as they won't be published until tomorrow...they basically look like, yep you guess it, people running.

it was cold and blustery and at one point it rained horizontally. somebody at the meet told me that this was cross country weather.

::as a crow flies::

2007-11-01T18:01:00.000-07:00

...arrived at the Great Swamp Headquarters early for an assignment...photos from the shoot to come later once they are published. when you are out in the Great Swamp, it is hard to believe that this wilderness area and raptor sanctuary is only 25 miles (as a crow flies) from the center of Times Square.

::trick or treat::

2007-10-31T10:21:00.001-07:00

A grocery store near me held a Halloween parade and costume contest. There was a lot of potential here but I was overwhelmed so my images are only ho-hum at best.
Happy Halloween.

::dragonman::

2007-10-31T10:18:00.001-07:00

woodcarver's association annual show and sale. this man is in the process of completing a 5 ft. wooden dragon (see here snaking up the frame)

::tan::

2007-10-31T10:17:00.001-07:00

::take a photo of him?::

2007-10-31T10:13:00.000-07:00

..a mom asked me to take a photo of her kid in the grocery store... the kid was apparently less excited about the photo...

::alternative to the front page::

2007-10-31T10:07:00.000-07:00

...the husband of a Woman's Club president at a gathering of many NJ Women's Club members. His football game got cancelled because of the crazy rain we had last weekend, so he got stuck helping out at the gathering and was the only man there...he asked if he could be on the front page of the newspaper. I couldn't promise him that, but I can put him on the blog...

::today it rained::

2007-10-26T18:40:00.000-07:00

This was my sheltered view of the field hockey game and the football game I shot today/night.

::trust::

2007-10-11T07:47:00.000-07:00

this is Ginger, you might have met her in a previous post. she always leaps in the car without looking back, trusting wholeheartedly that i am going to take her someplace she wants to go, whether it is a trip across the country or a short jaunt to a trailhead for a Sunday hike. i don't take that trust lightly. this morning she leapt into the car to go to the vet where i had to leave her for exrays and surgery. can't help but feel that i've betrayed her trust.

::just the other day::

2007-10-06T10:48:00.001-07:00

a couple of days ago i was assigned to photograph a running club. they meet in the evening in the parking lot of a church and run from there. i got to the parking lot a little early and looked for the woman who was listed as my contact with the running club. didn't see her yet.

long story a little less long, there was a wooded trail off to the side of the church parking lot and i thought that perhaps the group met there and ran on the trail. walked to the edge of the parking lot. looked down the trail, around the bend, and into the woods. there was a little altar there (a prayer circle, they call it). the altar was tucked back in the woods and there were two rustic benches facing the altar.

a man was sitting on one of the benches. he was facing the altar. though i was still a good distance away from him, he noticed me almost instantly. he turned around.
"you can come back here and check it out," he said.
"i was actually just looking for someone," i replied.
"come on back," he said.
it looks cool and there might be a picture there, i thought, so i wandered back.

the man, dressed in all black, had backed his car in beside the altar. couldn't see that from the trail head. he introduced himself and shook my hand. told me that he sometimes comes back here to pray.

"are you a member of the church here?" i asked him. he told me that he wasn't...he wanted to join a religious community but found that many of them didn't want outsiders. he was very strict and stiff in his movements and his voice was tense. struck me as if he was playing a role or something.

"i guess it is strange that i drove my car back here," he said and looked at me for conformation.

"i don't know, i've never been back here," i replied.

"i guess most people don't drink beer while they are praying," he said, motioning towards the big fosters oil beer can propped next to him on the bench. "i do magic," he said, "i am a magician. want me to show you a magic trick?"

"actually, i work for the newspaper and i have to go meet people for an assignment," i said.

"it'll only take a minute," he said. so i agreed. god forbid i be rude, right? he walked over to his car and opened the driverside door and the back door behind that. pulled out a handkerchief that was tied around some stuff. put the package on the roof of the car and asked me to come closer...to see the magic trick.

"i'm good right here," i said, feeling silly about the fact that i winced every time he turned his back to me to get something from the car because i was afraid of what he'd turn around with. he pulled out a small jar with a black dice with white dots in it. he unscrewed the top of the jar and pointed it at me me. i winced.

"normal top?," he asked. i nodded.

he pointed the jar at me. i winced.

"normal jar?" i nodded.

"watch the dice," he said, twirling the dice in front of me between his fingers. i pretended to watch the dice, but watched the man instead. "you are actually being hypnotized by the dice." kept asking me to come closer.

"i'm fine," i assured him.

after the dice twirling was finished, he put it in the jar, closed the top, did something to the jar and the dice broke into tons of smaller die, this time white with black dots.

"cool, i gotta go meet these people," i said.

"this is just for children," he said, "if i showed you my real tricks you'd be really scared," he said. i began to walk away. "you seem like a nice girl," he said, "now that i've showed you my magic trick, don't tell the pastor that i am back here." this was the second time he'd said for me not to tell the pastor he was there. the first time, i thought he was kidding. this time, i wasn't sure. i left. i met the running club, shot my assignment, and went back to the office to file. told a fellow photog about the incident and was advised to call the church. i called them. they called the police.

in almost a year of working in this county i'd never been to this church before that day. then i indirectly called the police on a man who might have been harmless. might have been a serial killer. might just have been a normal guy on a crappy day. who knows?

that was thursday. my assignment two days later was to photograph the blessing of the animals ceremony in that same prayer circle. this is a pic from that shoot.

normally, i am very trusting. i think that makes me better at my job. but still, we go into people's homes, into buildings, fields, the woods, whereever, armed with nothing but an assignment, camera equipment, our gut instincts, and a cell phone. just something to think about...

::Dr. Jones::

2007-10-04T08:16:00.000-07:00

...drum roll please...

Brandt defended the dissertation yesterday and he is now the fabulous Dr. Jones that he's been working so hard to become.

...the sweetest...

::Ginger::

2007-10-04T08:13:00.000-07:00

she got sick this week and when I took her to the vet I was a mess. hadn't slept, had been crying for a while (even through our morning hike). ever the worrier, i was convinced that she had cancer. "you alright?" the vet asked me. what kind of question is that. this was a new vet, so she had no way of knowing that the 14 year old dog on her examining table was the best dog in the world. or that on my many trips to and fro in the US for internships and jobs, i'd always taken the dog, my car, my cameras, and very little else. or that this dog had actually jumped through a window to protect our house in santa fe. or that this dog was the best roommate a girl could ask for. we've got a follow up appointment on monday, maybe upon second meeting the vet will get the picture.

::lucielle II::

2007-10-03T10:03:00.000-07:00

liza minelli. she sang, i shot. she took the stage late, i was on deadline. stress.

it'd been a few weeks since i'd been close on deadline. it's good for the nerves...like a cup of espresso.

::ouch::

2007-10-01T11:44:00.001-07:00

...he was OK.

::prep football::

2007-10-01T11:41:00.000-07:00

Football is a little bit of a challenge for me right now. It takes me a while to warm up with the new sports each season. Football is a lot of chasing the action, while summer sports like baseball are a lot of sitting a waiting for something to happen.

::Battle for Baby Dustin::

2007-09-23T07:10:00.001-07:00

Dominick Bencivengo, 17, is fighting for custody of his five month-old son. The son was given up for adoption by his birth mother. Bencivengo was not aware that he had a son until after the baby had been placed with an adoption agency and a family. Bencivengo has now had two supervised visitations with his son and has been awarded one two-hour visit each week, alternating locations between his home in New Jersey and Hauppaug, Long Island, where the adoptive family lives.

::off day.::

2007-09-21T19:55:00.001-07:00

great situation. interesting light. couldn't make a good picture.

::water water everywhere::

2007-09-21T19:43:00.000-07:00

I was signed up for a triathlon last Sunday that turned into a duathlon because the testing of the water a few days before the race showed an excessively high "Fecal Coliform" count. I don't know what that is...haven't looked it up...but was glad to do an extra run instead of swimming in the "Fecal Coliform." While I know that this photo is just a reflection, it made me think of the race the weekend before.

::the story, the Open::

2007-08-30T16:51:00.000-07:00

On Aug. 28 Justin Gimelstob took the court for the last US Open singles match before his retirement. In the draw, Gimelstob, once ranked 63rd in the world of men's singles tennis and from the county my paper covers, drew his first round opponent to be Andy Roddick, seeded fifth in the tournament.

The first set was great--Gimelstob led Roddick to a tie breaker with an overhand near the net.

...a few action shots...

Here he's waiting for the call on a challenge he made against Roddick's serve.
Sixth game, second set-Gimelstob is up to serve but waits as the men's and women's tennis teams from West Point exit the stadium. When he does step up to serve, the chair ump called it a second serve because of the delay. Gimelstob headed to the chair to protest the call.
Gimelstob leads the crowd in the chant, "first serve, first serve."

Gimelstob's protest was successfull, the ump reniged the call only for Gimelstob to double fault on the serves.
Roddick yelled across the court, "After all that, you go and do that!"
In this frame, Gimelstob replies across the court, "Trust me, I am more disappointed than you are."

Gimelstob reacts to accidentally hitting Roddick in the back saying that he would never intentionally hit him there. Gimelstob is bowing out of the sport becuase of back injuries that recent back surgery was unable to fix.

Gimelstob jokes around by sitting in the lap of officials on the court while waiting for a call on his serve, challenged by Roddick.

Gimelstob reacts to winning a challenge. I kept trying to ge somethig like this frame to work, but it just wouldn't. I think it needed a combination of different things--a longer lens, a different location in the photo pit, a different moment, etc...

I don't know much about tennis, but it seems to be largely a game of reactions, when it comes to the visuals of it all.

In a press conference after the match around 11:25 pm, Gimelstob said, "My back started bothering me in the third set. In a way, it makes (retiring) easier. I know in my heart I can't play at this level anymore. It was hard enough to play at this level when I was healthy. I can't compete with these guys on week-in week-out basis."

the press conference

A crew from the USA Network interviews Gimelstob at center court after the match.

Roddick won the game 7-6 (8-6), 6-3, 6-3.

::the outtakes, the Open::

2007-08-29T21:30:00.000-07:00

|the pit|
a fellow photographer frams Sharapova
Sharapova

|the other woman|
All of the cameras pointed to Sharapova at the other end of the court until Roberta Vinici scored a point.

|Outside Ashe|
outside Arthur Ashe Stadium.
Watching Jimmy Connors play on a practice court...the light was more interesting to me than what was happening on the court.

Arthur Ashe Stadium.

::ladder legs:

2007-08-29T21:18:00.000-07:00

The Ford Mansion is getting a really expensive face lift.

Light floods into the auditorium under renovation at the Ford Mansion Museum. Prior to renovation, the auditorium windows were covered by cinderblocks and a drop ceiling was in place.

Pedro Moreno (R) and Victor Manual drywall the a room that will house the Library Stacks at the Ford Mansion Museum

::golf::

2007-08-29T21:15:00.000-07:00

Brian Komline of Morris Plains has won the New Jersey Men's Amateur Golf title twice in the last three years.

::keeping the bees::

2007-08-29T21:11:00.000-07:00

Janet Katz maintains a beehive at Delbarton School. She keeps over 50 hive in Morris County. She's had to put the hives at Delbarton in a shed because the bears like the bees.

::food shoots::

2007-08-29T21:08:00.000-07:00

Another attempt at shooting food...it's difficult.

::summertime summertime sum sum summertime::

2007-08-29T21:05:00.000-07:00

the slug for this assignment was "last call summer." I'm not ready for it to be summer's last call.

::a new leaf::

2007-08-29T21:01:00.000-07:00

fall means...
the end of softball...
and the beginning of football...

::doing business::

2007-08-29T20:58:00.000-07:00

It seems like whenever I get sent to photograph biz assignments there are no customers. This is a boutique in Motown.

::Bald Soprano::

2007-08-29T20:57:00.000-07:00

Greg Jackson, who plays Mr. Martin, watches fellow cast members of NJ Shakespeare Theater's production of "The Bald Soprano" rehearse at Drew University's Kirby Theater

Pasty?

2007-08-29T20:52:00.001-07:00

Funny thing, before my wedding, I admitedly got a spray tan. I won't defend it, I know it is silly. I knew the second I stood in front of someone naked while they sprayed me with tanning solution, I would see them again...

A week after the wedding, I was assigned to photograph at the tanning booth. Here's an outtake from that biz shoot.

::4H Fair::

2007-08-29T20:47:00.000-07:00

Members of The New Jersey Martial Arts Academy perform a skit at the 4H Fair.

"Danny"
People at the fair were more than happy to ignore me, but
this python kept smelling my camera lenses.

::they'll be home soon::

2007-08-29T20:34:00.001-07:00

Jim Benoit was severely injured by an IED in Iraq. Shortly after his return from Iraq, he and Pam got married. They have spent the majority of their time since his return at Walter Reed Medical Center in DC. They lived in something like a hotel room in DC--the only accomodations that are handicapped accessable at Walter Reed are rooms without kitchens, so they only had a microwave. When not at Walter Reed, Jim and Pam Benoit call a trailer at Picatinny Arsenal home. Only half of the trailer is accessable to Jim when he is in his wheelchair because of the narrow hallway.

An organization called, "Homes for Troops" is building a new house for Jim & Pam in Wharton, NJ.

This is a peek at where they live now.

They try to visit the new house site every Saturday to take a look at the progress and say thank you to the volunteers building the house.

::flutterby::

2007-08-18T17:16:00.000-07:00