Unsung
Energy Enablers
Unsung
by Melanie Mobley
Artist's Statement:
Unsung is about knowing; knowing the person who cleans your office, the face you see taking your pulse in the ER and people who move in and out of your life on a daily basis. You see them, but you really don't see them. From war widows and retired soldiers from the "greatest generation" to mechanics and public service employees. Your life would not be livable without them, yet they remain faceless, nameless and their stories unknown-until now.
Since childhood, I have had a deep respect for those in service occupations. My grandfather worked through his last years as a bank custodian. There, I witnessed the apathy shown by the bank employees toward the people that kept their work space usable. My hometown heralded war veterans at Memorial Day commemorations yet I see no knowledge of the sacrifice the WWII veterans have made in the students I teach. When the power goes off, or we have a health emergency we expect help to arrive. Without the independent conservation farmers or the miners who tap the reserves of the earth we would have no fuel for body or home.
Why do these people give so much more than they ever get in return? I have been photographing these unsung heroes in their work and home environments. They have been captured as they shared their story of why the do what they do.
There are earlier images that include custodians and building maintainence crews. The current images below are of the following:
Sherman Coal Company has been processing anthracite coal in Elysburg, PA 70 years. Jeff Wiekel, Mike and his son Matt Deeter and Kenten Martin have been loading coal and keeping the breakers running while facing an uncertain future as the government clamps down on the industry. However, they supply the coal that fuels 6 power plants and heats thousands of homes throughout the Northeast. If you buy Kingsford Charcoal for your grill, it was made from Sherman Coal Company’s stove coal.
Volunteer firefighters Ben Wilson of Chariottesville VA who put his start in medical school at the University of Virginia to become a paramedic and volunteer firefighter in order to see what it is like on the front lines. Chief Jim Reed, Schuylkill Hose Company #2 has been a volunteer firefighter for 27 years. He took over as Chief when his father passed away. Craig Barkett, another volunteer firefighter of Schuylkill Hose Company #2, serves as both a volunteer firefighter and a water rescue volunteer.
The nurses, nurses aides and LPNs of Schuylkill Medical Center South are at the forefront of critical care in the hospital yet are often overshadowed by the doctors. Erin Mobley works as a nurses aide while putting herself through nursing school at Penn State. Mohamed Benchaid is a male Muslim RN who relocated from North Africa to an area populated primarily of conservative Christians. He is proud of his professionalism in spite of some prejudice from the locals. Laura Martin has been an LPN for 19 years. Due to changes in the health care industry, the hospital is cutting all of the LPNs. Laura will stay on but will face a 35% pay cut.
Mr. Francis Ortega and Mr. Orlando Perez work suspended by cables. They do the life threatening work of cutting trees that grow into power lines so we don't lose electricity during a storm. Their jobs are considered among the most dangerous of all work.
Mr. Kevin Barrett is a fourth generation Irish Catholic who's ancestors bought land to farm when they were run out of working on the canals by German immigrants. Kevin farms the hilly land, keeping 60 head of dairy cattle, foresting the mountains and growing corn using conservation methods. Natural gas in the Merceles Shale was found beneath his farmland. By selling the rights to BP for fracking, he is able to keep his farm running.
The Greatest Generation is represented byWWII widow Mrs. wMal Bartram is 92 years old. She went to work sewing the parachutes that were used in the D Day invasion; Captain Robert Kauffman, USN retired, who was a submarine commander in the Pacific theater and helped win the Battle of the Midway. He was on the ship that the Emperor of Japan surrendered on. He is now a resident of Vinson Hall in Mclean VA,
I am not sure where my images fall in the realm of current fine art photography. That is something I will explore in this class. All of the images were shot with a Nikon D300 camera, Nikkor f.2.8 24-70 lens and a Speedlight 910 flash.
Energy Enablers
Unsung
by Melanie Mobley
Artist's Statement:
Unsung is about knowing; knowing the person who cleans your office, the face you see taking your pulse in the ER and people who move in and out of your life on a daily basis. You see them, but you really don't see them. From war widows and retired soldiers from the "greatest generation" to mechanics and public service employees. Your life would not be livable without them, yet they remain faceless, nameless and their stories unknown-until now.
Since childhood, I have had a deep respect for those in service occupations. My grandfather worked through his last years as a bank custodian. There, I witnessed the apathy shown by the bank employees toward the people that kept their work space usable. My hometown heralded war veterans at Memorial Day commemorations yet I see no knowledge of the sacrifice the WWII veterans have made in the students I teach. When the power goes off, or we have a health emergency we expect help to arrive. Without the independent conservation farmers or the miners who tap the reserves of the earth we would have no fuel for body or home.
Why do these people give so much more than they ever get in return? I have been photographing these unsung heroes in their work and home environments. They have been captured as they shared their story of why the do what they do.
There are earlier images that include custodians and building maintainence crews. The current images below are of the following:
Sherman Coal Company has been processing anthracite coal in Elysburg, PA 70 years. Jeff Wiekel, Mike and his son Matt Deeter and Kenten Martin have been loading coal and keeping the breakers running while facing an uncertain future as the government clamps down on the industry. However, they supply the coal that fuels 6 power plants and heats thousands of homes throughout the Northeast. If you buy Kingsford Charcoal for your grill, it was made from Sherman Coal Company’s stove coal.
Volunteer firefighters Ben Wilson of Chariottesville VA who put his start in medical school at the University of Virginia to become a paramedic and volunteer firefighter in order to see what it is like on the front lines. Chief Jim Reed, Schuylkill Hose Company #2 has been a volunteer firefighter for 27 years. He took over as Chief when his father passed away. Craig Barkett, another volunteer firefighter of Schuylkill Hose Company #2, serves as both a volunteer firefighter and a water rescue volunteer.
The nurses, nurses aides and LPNs of Schuylkill Medical Center South are at the forefront of critical care in the hospital yet are often overshadowed by the doctors. Erin Mobley works as a nurses aide while putting herself through nursing school at Penn State. Mohamed Benchaid is a male Muslim RN who relocated from North Africa to an area populated primarily of conservative Christians. He is proud of his professionalism in spite of some prejudice from the locals. Laura Martin has been an LPN for 19 years. Due to changes in the health care industry, the hospital is cutting all of the LPNs. Laura will stay on but will face a 35% pay cut.
Mr. Francis Ortega and Mr. Orlando Perez work suspended by cables. They do the life threatening work of cutting trees that grow into power lines so we don't lose electricity during a storm. Their jobs are considered among the most dangerous of all work.
Mr. Kevin Barrett is a fourth generation Irish Catholic who's ancestors bought land to farm when they were run out of working on the canals by German immigrants. Kevin farms the hilly land, keeping 60 head of dairy cattle, foresting the mountains and growing corn using conservation methods. Natural gas in the Merceles Shale was found beneath his farmland. By selling the rights to BP for fracking, he is able to keep his farm running.
The Greatest Generation is represented byWWII widow Mrs. wMal Bartram is 92 years old. She went to work sewing the parachutes that were used in the D Day invasion; Captain Robert Kauffman, USN retired, who was a submarine commander in the Pacific theater and helped win the Battle of the Midway. He was on the ship that the Emperor of Japan surrendered on. He is now a resident of Vinson Hall in Mclean VA,
I am not sure where my images fall in the realm of current fine art photography. That is something I will explore in this class. All of the images were shot with a Nikon D300 camera, Nikkor f.2.8 24-70 lens and a Speedlight 910 flash.
