This summer I photographed two groups of people. The first
was at a book signing event held at Harris Cyclery in West Newton for my friend
Grant Petersen who’s new book Just Ride
had just been published. A group ride
had been planned for after the signing but as light and time were fading we
ended up with just the picture. Grant’s
book is a fine one, well worth reading for anyone with an interest in riding a
bike. In addition to cycling and
photography Grant and I have shared the trials and tribulations of beginning
and operating smallish businesses through the years. His counsel has proven invaluable.
The second group was the annual Chmura family reunion held
on July 7th at the old Donohue family farm in Krumville (pop. 7, I’m
told), NY, in the Catskills. This
reunion has been held without interruption for 47 consecutive years. This year it served also as a double memorial
service: for my Uncle Paul who grew up in this house (the empty chair front row
center was his) as well as cousin Moira’s 18 year old son Tobias who was lost
in a tragic fall off of Sleeping Giant in Hamden, CT in February. I have made this picture many times now.
Faces present in years past, now no longer with us, are still well represented
and remembered by the DNA comprising this years group.
