Rangefinder
Issue No. 2
Kenya Reberry, 14, sits in front of a three-bedroom townhouse that she shares with her two older sisters and her mother in Excelsior Springs. This week Kenya and her family prepare to move out after they received an eviction letter of their landlord. Photo by Elke Scholiers
Excelsior Springs: A town built for healing
By Tanishka R.
Located about thirty minutes from Kansas City is the town of Excelsior Springs. This humble-looking town has lived a rich past and has some miraculous tales to uncover.
Excelsior Springs came into existence with the discovery of Siloam Spring, a natural spring with medicinal properties. According to historical records, the spring was accidentally discovered in 1880 by a Black farmer named Travis Mellion. He was looking to help his daughter, who was suffering from a form of tuberculosis. On advice from nearby campers, Mellion bought the spring water to his daughter, and within weeks her health improved and eventually she was healed. Soon after, other people started sharing similar recovery experiences using the spring water. Discovery of new waters continued around the area, and a total of 20 separate mineral springs were identified, making Excelsior Springs the world's greatest collection of mineral waters.
Excelsior Springs saw a boom in its growth. Health resorts and clinics offering mineral baths, spas, and other treatments appeared throughout the town. Excelsior started to attract other people gaining the reputation of being 'A Haven of Health.' "There were more hotels than the actual town residents," said Eric Copeland, an associate at Mid-Continent Public Library.
Increased tourism brought prosperity and development to the town. "There were Grand architectural buildings like the Elm, Hall of Waters, and a lot of well known people came here to relax and vacation," Copeland said. Excelsior Springs continued to prosper despite the Great Depression, displaying an overall growth in population by the end of 1940.
The glory did not last for long.
"The clinics had stated to claim they can cure almost anything, which of course was not true," Copeland said. Moreover, people began losing faith in natural healing methods after the advances in medicine since World War II.
An article was published in the Saturday Evening Post called “The Hucksters of Pain” that exposed the scam the clinics were running. "It, in a way, started the downfall," Copeland said. The city gradually started losing business, as the crime rate increased in the '70s and '80s. "The neighboring communities would send their undesirables here since the cost of living was low,” Copeland said. “There was an inferiority complex that started developing."
Many of the town’s natural springs have dried up with only plaques reminding visitors of their former glory. Since the 1990s, residents and investors have tried to revive and rebuild the town. Many of the buildings have been renovated, including the town’s gem - the Elms Hotel and Spa.
Many Excelsior Springs residents hope to go back to the town’s heydays. "Since the pandemic, there has been a renewed outlook toward natural healing and mental health," Abigail Douglas said. Luckily for Excelsior Springs, this little hamlet already has the blueprint for becoming a haven of health.
Notes from the Jitter Box
Photo by Lily Dozier
Meet the Photographers
Rose Rawlings, 58, embraces Eloise Steinert, 67, after two of her horses were euthanized at her home in Excelsior Springs on September 18, 2022. Photo by Sophie Park
A Conversation About Pitching with Alyssa Schukar and Gabrielle Lurie
By Anastasia Busby and Irynka Hromotska
Think about structure
When taking on a new story, Gabrielle Lurie, staff photojournaist at the San Francisco Chronicle and MPW. 74 faculty, prefers to have a a deep and clear understanding of what layers exist.
“Does it have an arc? Is there a beginning, middle and end? Is there a journey that we're going on?” Lurie said.
It’s easy to find an interesting character, Lurie note, but an interesting character is not a story. To take a story idea one step further, photographers should ask as many questions as possible. This is crucial to establishing an angle and a broader shared experience with the reader.
“Once you've kind of established that there's a story, then you have to figure out why it's important,” Lurie said. This ensures other people will take an interest and might be able to relate and learn from the story.
“Every good pitch should have a character or a subject idea. You also want to have a sense of what you might be able to photograph,” said Alyssa Schukar, photojournalist, writer, and MPW. 74 co-director.
The main questions each pitch should answer are:
Why does this story matter? Why now? What can we learn from it? How does that connect to the larger picture nationally and internationally?
“You should also think about why you are the right person to work on the story. Why should they hire you, not the person who lives next door to your subjects,” Schukar said.
Keep it concise
When it comes to approaching to an editor, Lurie suggests keeping pitches short and sweet. As Randy Olson stated in his presentation Sunday, a successful pitch can be expressed in a sentence. Lurie advised pitching to an editor in person rather than through email.
MPW can be a brutal week for some participants. As a parting word of wisdom, Lurie noted that photographers should have patience and be kind to themselves. “It's a difficult process, but this is like the best way to do it because you just have a week to focus on it,” she said.
Think about layers
“The best stories are always about more than one thing,” said Schukar.
Let’s take caregiving as an example. A story about caregiving has multiple levels: it is about family, love, and relationships between multiple family members. But it also speaks about a larger cultural phenomenon — healthcare in America.
“So anytime you pitch to an editor, whether it's in the context of the Missouri Photo Workshop or at a larger publication, you want to make sure that you're telling them why this story matters in a larger context,” says Alyssa. “I go into a pitch giving the editor an understanding of those themes I'm trying to touch on, characters, [potential] photo moments. And essentially, a nut graph of how the story connects to the larger idea.”
Seek help from trusted peers
It can be useful to share your idea with trusted colleagues or fellow participants.
“They might make you think of the story differently because they all come with different perspectives,” Schukar said. “Sometimes they will ask questions that you forgot to ask.”
Brian Kratzer, Co-Director
Alyssa Schukar, Co-Director
Hany Hawasly, Technical Director
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