After shooting 12 graduations, it is difficult...

After shooting 12 graduations, it is difficult to find that one

unique picture that captures the excitement and energy of

commencement. Daily Pilot photographer Kent Treptow’s shot of Ross

Elledge giving Katie Robinson a piggyback ride does just that.

Teachers hugging students, students hugging fellow classmates and

the occasional burst of tears are a dime a dozen. So the objective is

to scan the crowd in search of something a little out of the

ordinary. When Kent saw the piggyback ride he knew he captured

something a little different. But he didn’t realize how special of a

moment it really was.

After getting feedback on our choice to run this picture as our

cover for the graduation issue we were informed by a family friend of

Ross Elledge how meaningful this photograph was. She said that it was

a pleasure to see him smile and enjoy himself after having made it

through a rough year, in which he lost his mother to breast cancer.

It may be coincidence, intuition or just plain luck, but when Kent

snapped that frame, he became a witness to one of life’s true

moments.

-- The Photo Staff