hope

Trey Lorimer, 4, eats a peanut butter cracker on his front porch, Monday, July 19, 2010, in Wolfforth. Trey, his two brothers, and his parents, have lived in this mobile home for four years, but will soon receive a new, donated trailer from St. Luke's Lubbock church. Members of the congregation provided man power as they filled over four dumpsters cleaning the property.

Monday, July 19, 2010. (Geoffrey McAllister/Lubbock Avalanche-Journal)

April Ellibee, left, cleans her property along side members of St. Luke's Lubbock church Robin Wolfington and Jon Lamerson, Monday, July 19, 2010. St. Luke's Lubbock helping clean Ellibee's property and donating a new trailer for her and her family. Ellibee, her husband, and their three kids have lived in the trailer for four years.

Monday, July 19, 2010. (Geoffrey McAllister/Lubbock Avalanche-Journal)

April Ellibee, center, is seen working along side members of St. Luke's Lubbock church from her kitchen window, Monday, July 19, 2010. St. Luke's Lubbock is cleaning the property and donating a new trailer for Ellibee and her family. Ellibee, her husband, and their three kids have lived in the trailer for four years.

Monday, July 19, 2010. (Geoffrey McAllister/Lubbock Avalanche-Journal)



Read Kellie Bramlet's related story HERE.

Amanda's vigil

Julie Valencia shows her support along side hundreds of friends and family during a candlelight vigil in memory of Amanda Moreno, who was found dead in her home Sunday afternoon. "Her little girls used to go to my daycare," Valencia said. Amanda's boyfriend has been charged for her murder.

Thursday, June 17,2010. (Geoffrey McAllister/Lubbock Avalanche-Journal)

Sara Flores, left, and Rudy Redondo, right, light candles during a vigil in memory of Amanda Moreno who was found dead in her home Sunday, June 13th. Hundreds gathered to show their respects and share memories of Amanda. Amanda's boyfriend has been charged for her murder.

Thursday, June 17,2010. (Geoffrey McAllister/Lubbock Avalanche-Journal)

Our Lady of Guadalupe

Hundreds of Catholic faithful walk down Avenue L in the Diocese of Lubbock Guadalupe Procession Sunday afternoon in Lubbock. The celebration was in honor of Our Lady of Guadalupe and was led by Lubbock Bishop Placido Rodriguez.

Sunday, December 6, 2009. (Geoffrey McAllister/Lubbock Avalanche-Journal)
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read Matthew McGowan's related story: Spiritual Journey: March through South Lubbock honors Our Lady of Guadalupe

going blind

I spent Wednesday afternoon with eleven-year-old Chad Lance of Dickens, Texas. Usually when you drive through Dickens (population 332) you think of TCS Ponderosa Grocery & Deli on Highway 82, voted among the top 50 barbecue joints in Texas; but now I will think of this inspirational boy. Although he has lost complete use of his left eye, and will likely soon lose sight in his right, Chad is an upbeat kid who loves his family and still keeps up with his school work and chores around the house. Read Joe Gulick's story - Child losing sight fights Stickler Syndrome bravely

Families displaced in apartment fire

LUBBOCK - A fire damaged five homes Tuesday in an apartment complex near the Marsha Sharp Freeway and Quaker Avenue, injuring one firefighter and displacing several families.

The fire broke out just after 6 p.m. at the Raleigh Place Condos in the 4400 block of 21st Street, where it burned the outside of the building as well as attic space.

No residents were injured, but one firefighter was treated by EMS after a piece of sheetrock fell on his head. Fire officials said the injury was not serious.

Chris Angerer, deputy chief with the Lubbock Fire Department, said investigators have yet to determine the cause of the blaze...(Continue reading Josh Hull's story: Fire damages Raleigh Place Condos, displaces families)

Preview: JESUSAVESOULS

A few weeks ago I attended a prayer meeting of local pastors where, as I was conversing with them after their prayers, I learned of a faithful man who stands on the corner of University and 66th, six days a week, holding the sign "JESUSAVESOULS". I spent a week with him and was amazed at the number of lives he touches while standing on the corner 6 days a week from 6 am to 6 pm. Thinking it would be a great end of the year story I spent the week trying to document how he touches people's lives. Unfortunately, timeliness isn't very important in the eyes of some of our editors so this story won't be running until mid-January, but here is one of the photos from the story.

Check back in a few weeks to see the finished product - I was able to capture some pretty amazing moments recording audio and still photos.

Clues wanted in murder case

Blown sand partially covers flowers left to remember Monica Adams who was found beaten and murdered in a northeast Lubbock field on August 20th of this year. Police Sgt. Jim Pachall, right, remembers the scene nearly three months later.

Thursday, November 13, 2008. (Geoffrey McAllister/Lubbock Avalanche-Journal)
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Red and white roses lie in the sand near where Monica Adams' body was found three months ago.

Her family placed them there as they remember their loved one and wait for a killer to be found.

Police still hope to get critical tips three months after her body was found brutally beaten in a Northeast Lubbock field.

Sgt. Jim Pachall said some people think the murder case will go away because of Adams' history in prostitution - and it has presented challenges in the case - but it won't stop police from trying to find a killer...(Continue reading related article: Lubbock police hope public can help solve Adams murder case)

Record rains send water throughout Lubbock

Even when the rain stopped, the emergency didn't.

Overfilling playa lakes continued rising Friday, threatening homes and keeping streets flooded hours after the city was pounded with 7.8 inches of rain - the biggest single day of rain in recorded Lubbock history.

The rain was dumped onto the area Thursday and Friday sent the city into emergency mode, doubling the number of police officers on the streets.
About 200 drivers were stuck on flooded streets and there were more than 60 auto accidents, said officials. (Continue reading the related article: Record rains send water all over Lubbock)

Cedar City mourns crash victims

Our third and hardest day in Cedar City. After meeting many of the family members and friends of the crash victims it was very difficult to photograph them in mourning. I found myself doing more walking and thinking than photographing... My heart and prayers have been and will continue to go out to those affected by this tragic loss. Hundreds gathered at a memorial for the victims killed in last week's plane crash near Moab, Monday evening at Southern Utah University. A candle was lit next to a portrait of each individual who was killed in the accident. -- Monday, August 25, 2008. Photo by Geoffrey McAllister/Deseret News

Lisa Shumway, left, sadly tends to her three-month-old baby along side her parents Peggy and Lloyd Layton during a memorial service held for those killed in last week's plane crash near Moab, Monday evening at Southern Utah University. Lisa's husband, Keith, was one of the 10 killed in the accident. -- Monday, August 25, 2008. Photo by Geoffrey McAllister/Deseret News

Andrea White, wife of David White who died in Friday's plane crash in Moab, reads through cards received from her 8th grade class at Canyon View Middle School Monday afternoon. Andrea has been grateful for the love and support she's received from the community. -- Monday, August 25, 2008. Photo by Geoffrey McAllister/Deseret News
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CEDAR CITY — It was a typical birthday party for a 7-year-old: About 10 children and their parents gathered at a neighborhood park. The children played games and ate cake and ice cream, and the birthday boy opened his presents.
All the while, the boy's mother, Andrea White, did her best to keep up appearances that everything was OK, even though her husband and the boy's father, David White, was one of 10 Cedar City area residents killed in a plane crash on Friday, the day before the party... (Read more of the related article: Cedar City mourns crash victims)

Family, friends offer thoughts on 10 killed in crash

It was our second straight day in Cedar City trying to capture the lives and memories of those who died in a plane crash in Moab last Friday. It's a very uncomfortable situation to approach the home of their family members but when they understand we're there to help memorialize their loved ones they often open up to us. It was nice to even be thanked and told it felt "almost therapeutic" for them.

The photo below was captured in the Ellsworth's neighborhood at sunset.
Flowers decorate the front room of the Ellsworth's home in Cedar City as LynAnn Ellsworth, right, greets well wishers at her front door Sunday afternoon. LynAnn's husband, Dr. Lansing Ellsworth, and son, Dallin, were both killed in Friday's plane accident in Moab. -- Saturday, August 23, 2008. Photo by Geoffrey McAllister/Deseret News
Kamber Ellsworth, wife of Dallin Ellsworth who was killed in Friday's plane crash outside Moab, remembers her husband in their Cedar City home Sunday afternoon. Kamber is eight months pregnant with their son. -- Saturday, August 23, 2008. Photo by Geoffrey McAllister/Deseret News

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CEDAR CITY — Sometime in the next five weeks, Kamber Ellsworth expects to deliver a baby, name him and take him home, without her husband by her side.
Kamber's husband since May 2007, Dallin Ellsworth, was one of 10 Cedar City area residents killed in a plane crash outside of Moab on Friday. The plane carried a pilot and nine employees of Red Canyon Aesthetics and Medical Spa dermatology clinic.

"He's a really good husband, and a really good father," Kamber said about Dallin, to whom she still referred in the present tense on Sunday. "He loves to talk to him, and the baby moves all the time." (Read more of the related article: Family, friends offer thoughts on 10 killed in crash )

Deaths of 10 stun Cedar City

Reporter Laura Hancock and I are in Cedar City trying our best to memorialize those who perished in a plane crash in Moab Friday evening. All ten occupants of the plane are from the Cedar City area. Assignments like this are difficult - the families need time to grieve. We were able to speak with the Goddard family tonight.

Ann Goddard, left, her daughter Chelsea, center, and her son Yorke, right remember their family members David and Cecilee who were killed in a plane crash in Moab Friday night. -- Saturday, August 23, 2008. Photo by Geoffrey McAllister/Deseret News
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MOAB — It was a somber scene Saturday as investigators sorted through what little was left of a plane that crashed here, killing 10 Cedar City residents.
The plane's pilot, as well as nine employees of the Red Canyon Aesthetics and Medical Spa dermatology clinic, were killed Friday night shortly after the plane took off from Canyonlands Field Airport northwest of Moab.

"The plane was completely engulfed in flames," said Grand County Sheriff James Nyland. (Read more of related article: Deaths of 10 stun Cedar City)

SLC Police arrest

Salt Lake City Police arrest a man after fleeing into a vacant home on 9th Avenue. Police had received a report of a suspicious man possibly doing drugs in a vehicle on 9th Avenue. When they pulled up behind the vehicle the man fled. There was a short foot pursuit until the man broke into a vacant house where he was found and arrested. According to Sergeant Roger Williams, the man is being booked on possession of a stolen vehicle, failure to comply with police, and other charges are possible. -- Monday, August 18, 2008. Photo by Geoffrey McAllister/Deseret News

Gay support group Affirmation outlines requests to LDS Church

David Nielson of the group Affirmation addresses the media during a press conference Monday in Salt Lake City. Affirmation had previously planned to meet with officials of the LDS Church but that meeting was postponed. -- Monday, August 11, 2008. Photo by Geoffrey McAllister/Deseret News
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Had a gay LDS support group met with LDS Church representatives Monday morning as scheduled, it would have asked the church to affirm its recent statements on homosexuality in the upcoming general conference.

Though church leaders have stated that being attracted to a member of the same sex is not a sin, rank-and-file members — particularly bishops who counsel with gay and lesbian members — have not "absorbed" the message, said Olin Thomas, executive director of Affirmation: Gay and Lesbian Mormons. Consequently, he said, gay members continue to encounter threatening, even hostile, church environments... (Read more of the related article: Gay support group outlines requests to LDS Church)

PETA bathers - out of place?

Ruth McEwan of Salt Lake, left, looks on with disapproval as two PETA protesters Ashley Byrne of Washington D.C. and Cassandra Callaghan of Florida bathe on the corner of Main and North Temple Friday afternoon in Salt Lake City. "It's disgusting," said McEwan who was leaving the Salt Lake Temple after attending her grandchilds wedding. The protesters are covered by a banner that reads "1 lb. of meat = 6 months of showers." PETA says U.N. scientists have determined that raising animals for food generates more greenhouse-gas emissions than all the cars, SUVs, trucks, and planes in the world combined. -- Friday, August 08, 2008. Photo by Geoffrey McAllister/Deseret News

Remembering Crandall Canyon

Please watch the audio slideshow and remember those touched by this tragic event (click on the above photo, or HERE.)

HUNTINGTON — Steve Allred finally has a special place to go near the sealed Crandall Canyon Mine where his brother, Kerry Allred, was entombed in a collapse one year ago.

"It's amazing," Allred said about a new monument dedicated Wednesday at the mine. "It's helping me."

But moving on has been hard.

"I'll never have closure, never," said Allred, a miner for 27 years. (Continue reading related article: Crandall Canyon remembrance)

Utahns clamor for 'Breaking Dawn'

"Breaking Dawn" is here.
The long-, feverishly, breathlessly, yearningly, awaited final installment in Stephenie Meyer's "Twilight" saga, hit the bookshelves at one minute past midnight Friday night.

Release parties were held — with much the same fervor that greeted the last "Harry Potter" book — at Borders, Barnes & Noble, some Deseret Book and other bookstores throughout the state. (Read more from the related article: Utahns clamor for 'Breaking Dawn')

View related audio slideshow HERE, or click on the image above.

Artspace residents, retailers plan gathering

Six-year-old Nico Shaw watches Kristy Gonzales, owner of downtown coffee shop A Cup of Joe, pick through a fresh mix of roasted espresso beans. A Cup of Joe is feeling the pinch of a worsening economy. The shop has fallen behind on its lease payments and needs to catch up soon to avoid eviction. Members of the community are hosting a celebration of local businesses, artists and musicians Friday at the coffee shop to raise money for it and other struggling local businesses. Thursday, July 17, 2008. Geoffrey McAllister/Deseret News


Kristy Gonzales, owner of downtown coffee shop A Cup of Joe, roasts a mix of expresso beans in her shop Thursday afternoon.
Read related article: Artspace residents, retailers plan gathering

Station Park - Farmington project to break ground

FARMINGTON — When you leave FrontRunner at its Farmington station, you don't have a lot of options. There's Lagoon, reachable by shuttle. And within walking distance are the Davis County Jail and 2nd District Court.
But if you need to do some shopping or watch a movie, you have to go to another city.

Station Park aims to change that. (Read more of the related article: Farmington project to break ground)

Storm causes flooding, evacuation in Taylorsville

TJ Kane, left, Kenydi Kane and Kenzie Kane paddle a canoe across a flooded field near 6800 South and 4800 West in West Jordan on Tuesday afternoon. "This is the deepest I've seen it get in 15 years," said Joni Kane, their mother. In Taylorsville, the thunderstorm also triggered a mudslide. -- Photo by Geoffrey McAllister/Deseret News

Related article: Storm causes flooding, evacuation in Taylorsville

One year after a record fire in Utah

COVE FORT — The Bureau of Land Management's Harvey Gates can look out over a field near I-15 and see the future, how an area burned by the record-breaking Milford Flat fire last year will rebound next to a field of flowing tall grasses — all part of a reseeding effort after a wildfire here 11 years ago...
Read more at the related article: Mending Milford: Ravaged by wildfire 1 year ago, area begins to recover
Click below to watch an audio slideshow about the reseeding project.