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A time for mourning in wake of 'our tsunami'
Nise's Notes
By Denise Schoppe
The Marlin Democrat
September 07, 2005
For weeks, the news has been saturated with reports of Cindy Sheehan's protest in Crawford. Her requests to see the President soon became a rally cry as many flocked to the small town to both support her cause as well as to give a rebuttal. I feared an old fashioned shoot out would spawn from the two camps as Crawford Police and McLennan County Sheriff's Department attempted to keep things as peaceful as possible.
As all eyes were on the small Central Texas town and one mother's cause, as everyone took one side of the issue or the other, the making of disaster were building in the warm waters near Florida.
In what seemed to be only an instant, all eyes turned from Cindy Sheehan to Hurricane Katrina. The high winds and torrential downpours of this lady spoke louder than the speeches and chants of Camp Casey.
The world watched as Katrina hit Mississippi and Louisiana, and it was as if everyone held their breath waiting to see just how bad the damage would be once she cleared out of the way.
"It was like our tsunami," Vincent Creel, a spokesman for the Mississippi Gulf Coast city of Biloxi, was reported to have said in the wake of the storm.
Similar to the aftermath of last December's Asian tsunami disaster, families and friends hope and pray that their family members are not among the ever-rising death toll. Lives lost to the storm surges that turned cities and neighborhoods into lakes.
The strength of nature has spoken once again, showing us that man can not stand up to natural forces greater than himself.
I think that everyone is feeling a deep remorse for the lives lost to this storm. While I did not personally know anyone in the area hit hardest, I watched the coverage on the TV and kept up with updated reports on the internet. Through those images, I've felt a sense of loss and sadness. The images show an area that brings about a feeling of almost hopelessness as families find their homes and businesses simply gone.
Thousands have flocked to neighboring states looking for a safe haven. A wave of survivors have come to Texas, and they have made their way up into Central Texas looking for any help they can find. Families have been split apart; lives completely left sitting with nothing but the clothes on their back.
What happened last week has affected everyone — even here. Between trying to offer aid to victims, giving homes to pets left owner-less, and the rising cost of gas, no one is going unaffected by the storm. Whether anyone really realizes it, the storm may have hit Louisiana, Mississippi and Alabama, but its causing a domino effect into the rest of the nation. It's not just over there, its right here, too.
We all mourn the loss of life, the change in our own everyday lives, and the loss of a sense of laid-back attitude "The Big Easy" could instill in almost all Americans — whether you'd been there or not.
Much like something that happened "over there" affects us right here, so to has the death of a colleague affected us here at The Democrat.
Marlinites have seen some of his work as he's provided us here at The Democratphotography from UIL events and the occasional article.
Mr. Mike Peck was a long-time employee of our sister-newspaper, The Cameron Herald. He passed away this last Tuesday after having suffered multiple strokes. He was only 48 years old.
An eye for a good picture, his photography could easily have been by some of the highest paid Associate Press reporters in the field of journalism. If that wasn't enough, he was a wonderful writer as well.
Had he ever chosen to leave Cameron and pursue his career elsewhere, I don't doubt he'd have possibly been right in the thick of this current hurricane footage. He had no trouble going from one extreme to the next in his photography and stories. However, he opted to stay in his hometown and report the news there... a feat that I'm not sure many journalists would ever attempt. However, he did it with a sense of professionalism mixed with a healthy dose of camaraderie.
Having grown up in Cameron, Mike is a staple image in my mind growing up. He was always there when anything was going on to take pictures. He always seemed to miraculously know where to be and when. From the time I was a Kindergartner, through my High School graduation, and most recently at my nephew's Little League baseball game, I could always depend on Mike being around with a camera around his neck. He and his wife, Kim, never had children of their own, but I think that in some way... every child who attended school there became his own. He took that level of care in every photograph ever taken.
I have always admired him and his work, and I couldn't help but feel a little honored to come to work for a newspaper affiliated with the one he worked. He had an eye for a photo, a nose for a news story, and a presence every respected and admired. He was a rare and genuine talent that will be missed.
Every day lives are lost — be it natural causes or tragedy — and we mourn our loss. Right now almost everyone is in a stage of confusion, fear and sadness; however, as time passes the wounds will heal. We will all move on with our lives, but we will also never forget. Hopefully, within our memories we also find strength — strength to face yet another day and not fear the unknown challenges ahead of us.
Nise's Notes
By Denise Schoppe
The Marlin Democrat
September 07, 2005
For weeks, the news has been saturated with reports of Cindy Sheehan's protest in Crawford. Her requests to see the President soon became a rally cry as many flocked to the small town to both support her cause as well as to give a rebuttal. I feared an old fashioned shoot out would spawn from the two camps as Crawford Police and McLennan County Sheriff's Department attempted to keep things as peaceful as possible.
As all eyes were on the small Central Texas town and one mother's cause, as everyone took one side of the issue or the other, the making of disaster were building in the warm waters near Florida.
In what seemed to be only an instant, all eyes turned from Cindy Sheehan to Hurricane Katrina. The high winds and torrential downpours of this lady spoke louder than the speeches and chants of Camp Casey.
The world watched as Katrina hit Mississippi and Louisiana, and it was as if everyone held their breath waiting to see just how bad the damage would be once she cleared out of the way.
"It was like our tsunami," Vincent Creel, a spokesman for the Mississippi Gulf Coast city of Biloxi, was reported to have said in the wake of the storm.
Similar to the aftermath of last December's Asian tsunami disaster, families and friends hope and pray that their family members are not among the ever-rising death toll. Lives lost to the storm surges that turned cities and neighborhoods into lakes.
The strength of nature has spoken once again, showing us that man can not stand up to natural forces greater than himself.
I think that everyone is feeling a deep remorse for the lives lost to this storm. While I did not personally know anyone in the area hit hardest, I watched the coverage on the TV and kept up with updated reports on the internet. Through those images, I've felt a sense of loss and sadness. The images show an area that brings about a feeling of almost hopelessness as families find their homes and businesses simply gone.
Thousands have flocked to neighboring states looking for a safe haven. A wave of survivors have come to Texas, and they have made their way up into Central Texas looking for any help they can find. Families have been split apart; lives completely left sitting with nothing but the clothes on their back.
What happened last week has affected everyone — even here. Between trying to offer aid to victims, giving homes to pets left owner-less, and the rising cost of gas, no one is going unaffected by the storm. Whether anyone really realizes it, the storm may have hit Louisiana, Mississippi and Alabama, but its causing a domino effect into the rest of the nation. It's not just over there, its right here, too.
We all mourn the loss of life, the change in our own everyday lives, and the loss of a sense of laid-back attitude "The Big Easy" could instill in almost all Americans — whether you'd been there or not.
Much like something that happened "over there" affects us right here, so to has the death of a colleague affected us here at The Democrat.
Marlinites have seen some of his work as he's provided us here at The Democratphotography from UIL events and the occasional article.
Mr. Mike Peck was a long-time employee of our sister-newspaper, The Cameron Herald. He passed away this last Tuesday after having suffered multiple strokes. He was only 48 years old.
An eye for a good picture, his photography could easily have been by some of the highest paid Associate Press reporters in the field of journalism. If that wasn't enough, he was a wonderful writer as well.
Had he ever chosen to leave Cameron and pursue his career elsewhere, I don't doubt he'd have possibly been right in the thick of this current hurricane footage. He had no trouble going from one extreme to the next in his photography and stories. However, he opted to stay in his hometown and report the news there... a feat that I'm not sure many journalists would ever attempt. However, he did it with a sense of professionalism mixed with a healthy dose of camaraderie.
Having grown up in Cameron, Mike is a staple image in my mind growing up. He was always there when anything was going on to take pictures. He always seemed to miraculously know where to be and when. From the time I was a Kindergartner, through my High School graduation, and most recently at my nephew's Little League baseball game, I could always depend on Mike being around with a camera around his neck. He and his wife, Kim, never had children of their own, but I think that in some way... every child who attended school there became his own. He took that level of care in every photograph ever taken.
I have always admired him and his work, and I couldn't help but feel a little honored to come to work for a newspaper affiliated with the one he worked. He had an eye for a photo, a nose for a news story, and a presence every respected and admired. He was a rare and genuine talent that will be missed.
Every day lives are lost — be it natural causes or tragedy — and we mourn our loss. Right now almost everyone is in a stage of confusion, fear and sadness; however, as time passes the wounds will heal. We will all move on with our lives, but we will also never forget. Hopefully, within our memories we also find strength — strength to face yet another day and not fear the unknown challenges ahead of us.
