Gone but Not Forgotten

This is a frame from an event called, "Gone but Not Forgotten." Organized by a high school teacher and dance instructor, the event was held to both honor the memories of local teens killed by violence and provide students and community members with a public outlet for some of their pain.

This frame is from the balloon release at the end. . . this family's daughter graduated with honors last year. She was planning on attending college and had been a drum major in school. She was stabbed to death in a parking lot in October. The man accused of killing her is awaiting trial now.

It was an incredibly moving evening. To see the story and the gallery I posted with it:

http://tinyurl.com/csdlc5f

Flint Rollers

Saturday night I had the privilege of shooting both roller derby teams from Flint in their season opener at Perani Areana. I can totally see why everybody and their mother wants to do a roller derby story. These ladies were amazing! In any event, I had a great time and took a few good pictures.

Thanks for looking.

Hula Hooping Fools

Just a few laughs with two dear friends the night before MPPA.

Thanks for looking,

Because I Continue to Lack Humility

Another MPPA has come and gone. Props to the fantastic shooters who were honored this weekend including but not limited to: Nick Dentamaro, Nick King, Ryan Garza, Neil Blake, Kendra Stanley-Mills, Jake May, Sean Proctor, Ashley Miller, Erik Holladay, Josh Radtke, Cory Morse, Mike Mulholland and many others.

Check out the stellar work at:

http://www.mppa.org/poy/?c=2011-pictures-of-the-year

Thanks for looking.

Wedding Plans

Spent Sunday afternoon at a bridal show in Flint this past weekend. These events are always fun to cover because they tend to be full of people really excited to be there and equally as excited to talk about their upcoming marriage, not to mention have their picture taken. This couple seemed to be having a particularly fun afternoon.

Thanks for looking.

Back Again

Well my new site is finally up and running, thanks to the incredibly talented Patrick Wellever. Check it out at:

katierausch.com

Welcome to 2012

Well, it's been an eventful year. I've had the good fortune to be able to create some fantastic memories with dear friends and see a few incredible places. Here's to hoping 2012 is a good one for us all. . .

Last Day with the Cit Pat

So it's my last day as a staff photojournalist with the Jackson Citizen Patriot.

I'll be updating my website soon, which is like posting a "best of" edit. So in lieu of that, I decided to feature one of my last assignments with the paper.

I spent a few hours with a father/son duo while they did their chores on the family farm. New updates to child labor laws would make it difficult for children like Jeremy, who is 14, to work on his family's farm. The legislation would place restrictions on the ability of anyone under 16 to work with livestock, pesticides and machinery. Additionally, children would be unable to work on a farm unless their parents were its sole owner, so farms co-owned by extended family are out.

I guess in my own, somewhat melodramatic, way I felt like this assignment was pretty on par with my time in journalism. It's a profession I've loved dearly since high school and I've thoroughly enjoyed my time here. I'm not sure what or where I'm headed to next but I'm trying to be excited for a new chapter in my life.

And, of course, I'm always available for freelance.

Thanks for looking.