2018: The Year in Pictures

2018 has been quite a year. It started off quietly but picked up speed with the beginning of the teachers strike, and it hasn’t really let up since. This year I had my byline in almost every major publication across the country for the first time, traveled to South America, made some important personal life steps, met so many amazing people, and had experiences that have profoundly impacted me. Looking forward to what 2019 has in store.

Thousands braved cold temperatures and sustained rainfall to attend a Statewide Day of Action rally on the south steps of the Capitol building in Charleston, W.V., on Friday, February 17, 2018. The rally was done in support of education and public employees in their struggle for competitive pay and benefits.

Governor Jim Justice stands up to leave a press conference at the capitol building on the fourth day of statewide walkouts in Charleston, W.V., on Tuesday, February 27, 2018.

Jennyerin Steele Staats, a special education teacher from Jackson County holds her sign aloft outside of the capitol building after WVEA President Dale Lee outlined the terms for ending the walkout on the fourth day of statewide walkouts in Charleston, W.V., on Tuesday, February 27, 2018.

Thousands of teachers and school personnel fill the capitol building in Charleston, W.V., on Monday, March 05, 2018; the eighth day of statewide school closures.

Kristen Kief of Jefferson County wears bunny ears, an emblem of the ongoing teacher strike at the capitol in Charleston, W.V., on Monday, March 05, 2018; the eighth day of statewide school closures.

School personnel leave the Capitol grounds after WVEA President Dale Lee outlined the terms for ending the walkout at the capitol building on the fourth day of statewide walkouts in Charleston, W.V., on Tuesday, February 27, 2018.

From right, Wyoming County’s Mullens Elementary school teachers Kara Brown, Katherine Dudley and Nina Tunstalle, along with Lois Casto of Central Elementary school in St. Albans, react to news of a deal reached between the House and Senate for a 5% across the board increase for state workers at the capitol in Charleston, W.V., on Tuesday, March 06, 2018; the ninth day of statewide school closures.

State senators acknowledge the cheers of teachers and school personnel after the passage of a bill to increase pay of state workers by 5% at the capitol in Charleston, W.V., on Tuesday, March 06, 2018; the ninth day of statewide school closures.

Teachers and school personnel celebrate after the state Senate approved a bill to increase state workers pay across the board by 5% at the capitol in Charleston, W.V., on Tuesday, March 06, 2018; the ninth day of statewide school closures.

Surrounded by Union leaders, Gov. Jim Justice signs a bill increasing state workers salaries by 5% across the board during a press conference at the Culture Center after the House and Senate passed the bill earlier in the day in Charleston, W.V., on Tuesday, March 06, 2018; ending the statewide teachers strike after 9 days of school closures.

Misty Night. Kanawha Boulevard.

House in a field outside of Belva, W.Va.

Long Point Overlook. Fayetteville, W.Va.

Star trails swirl around Polaris, the North Star, in this hour-long exposure at Calhoun County Park outside of Grantsville, West Virginia;

Rainy Day. New Orleans.

A woman holds an umbrella on a rainy day amidst fall colors at the Glade Creek Grist Mill inside Babcock State Park near Clifftop, W.Va., on Saturday, October 27, 2018.

Pumpkin House. Kenova, W.Va.

Watching fireworks over Appalachian Power Park from the top of a parking lot in Charleston, W.V., on Wednesday, July 04, 2018.

Fairgoers on a carnival ride are silhouetted against the setting sun on opening day of the State Fair of West Virginia at the State Fairgrounds in Fairlea, W.V. on Thursday, August 09, 2018.

Sandro Leal-Santiesteban practices with his violin shortly before the West Virginia Symphony Orchestra takes the stage during the 36th annual Symphony Sunday on the lawn of the University of Charleston in Charleston, W.V., on Sunday, June 03, 2018

Sunlight from a skylight overhead illuminates Margot Jogwick as she announces a host of names of those who were murdered in the Holocaust during the 24th Annual “Unto Every Person There Is a Name” Holocaust Memorial Program at the Charleston Town Center Mall. in Charleston, W.V., on Thursday, April 12, 2018. Jogwick was born in 1934, and lived in the Jewish Quarter of Berlin despite not being jewish herself. She was a witness to kristallnacht and lived in Berlin for the entire duration of the war; seeking shelter in bunkers with her family during the Battle of Berlin in April 1945, which ended with Hitler’s suicide and the surrender of Nazi Germany. “It looked like Syria. Everything was rubble” she said. She lived in the Soviet sector of Berlin until 1958 when she emigrated to the United States.

Larrecsa Cox of Cabell County EMS hugs a client after setting up outpatient care for her and the client’s significant other in Huntington, W.V., on Thursday, April 19, 2018. In the first three months of 2018, overdose totals in Cabell County were down 36 percent compared with the same time in 2017, according to health officials. This drop has been credited in part by the Mayor to the efforts of the QRT,

Bill Ward uses a garden hose to assist firefighters in putting out a fire as multiple engines responded to a house fire along Virginia Avenue in the Longacre neighborhood of Smithers on Sunday morning, October 21, 2018. Ward, who lives down the street, mentioned that the person living at the home came down the street yelling, and everyone grabbed what they could to put out the fire until emergency personnel arrived. No injuries were initially reported and the cause of the fire remained unknown at the scene.

Protesters are illuminated by police squad cars across the street from Market Street Park, where the controversial statue of Confederate Gen. Robert E. Lee stands on the second anniversary of the “Unite the Right” rally in Charlottesville, W.V. on Saturday, August 11, 2018.

Emily Filler attempts to dissuade state police from advancing on students rallying on the grounds of the University of Virginia on the second anniversary of the “Unite the Right” rally in Charlottesville, W.V. on Saturday, August 11, 2018.

White supremacists, led by Jason Kessler, march to Lafayette Square during the “Unite the Right 2” rally in Washington, D.C. on Sunday, August 12, 2018.

Journalists photograph a type of smoke grenade placed by Antifa-activists in the middle of 17th street during the “Unite the Right 2” rally in Washington, D.C. on Sunday, August 12, 2018.

A Metropolitan Police officer smokes a cigar while standing guard at the Pennsylvania Ave. security barrier on 17th Street where counterprotesters had gathered during the “Unite the Right 2” rally in Washington, D.C. on Sunday, August 12, 2018.

Protesters are reflected in the glass of a White House security checkpoint on 17th street during the “Unite the Right 2” rally in Washington, D.C. on Sunday, August 12, 2018.

The West Virginia State Capitol is reflected in the windows of the pilothouse as Captains Frank Murray, left, and Mike Krollmann steer the BB Riverboats’ River Queen on the Kanawha River in Charleston, W.V., on Friday, June 22, 2018.

Kanawha City Elementary school student Derrick Johnson, 5, and his brother David Johnson, 3 stand with others gathered on the steps of the Capitol building in Charleston, W.V., on Saturday, March 24, 2018 in solidarity with the March for Our Lives rally in Washington organized by survivors of the school shooting in Parkland, Florida. “After the Parkland shooting I was scared to death to send my son to school” Their mother Carrie Samuels (not pictured) said.

Henry Owens, 3, leans over a pew to retrieve a pretzel he dropped during an afternoon mass at Sacred Heart Co-Cathedral in Charleston, W.W., on Ash Wednesday, February 14th, 2018.

Four kids look on curiously at a spin the wheel challenge at Appalachian Power Park in Charleston, W.V. on Tuesday, July 17, 2018.

Jasmin Ford, 7, bounces on an inflatable horse during the Easter Carnival at the North Plaza of the Capitol Complex in Charleston, W.V., on Saturday, March 31, 2018.

Evan Kyer, 10, waits to participate in the Novice Goat Showman with his goat Neptune on opening day of the State Fair of West Virginia at the State Fairgrounds in Fairlea, W.V. on Thursday, August 09, 2018.

From left, Malia Kearns, 8, Elliot Erlmett, 4, and Hayden Grimmett, 8, race down the hallway during a carnival-style book fair at the George Washington Elementary School in Eleanor, W.V., on Tuesday, July 24, 2018.

Putnam Princess’. Charleston, W.Va.

JROTC 1st Lieutenant Kristopher Collins of Tolsia High School waits with other cadets for during the state Junior Reserve Officer Training Corps drill competition at McLaughlin Air National Guard Base in Charleston, W.V., on January 27, 2018. Numerous high schools from around the state participated in the competition which judged their abilities to execute specific drill movements and tasks.

Joined by Smokey the Bear, West Virginia First Lady Cathy Justice plants a dogwood tree in front of Sharon Dawes Elementary School in observance of Arbor Day in Miami, W.V., on Thursday, April 26, 2018.

A great pair of socks are seen during a special session of the state House of Delegates in Charleston, W.V., on Monday, August 13, 2018. The Delegates are voting on 15 articles of impeachment against the four sitting judges of the West Virginia Supreme Court.

Members of the House Judiciary Committee walk by portraits of the remaining court Justices while touring the offices of the West Virginia Supreme Court of Appeals in Charleston, W.V. on Monday, August 6th, 2018. Justice Menis Ketchum retired from his seat one day before West Virginia lawmakers were to consider whether the state Supreme Court justices deserved to be impeached for corruption.

President Trump takes the stage at a rally in support of the Senate candidacy of Attorney General Patrick Morrisey, Monday, Aug. 21, 2018, at the Charleston Civic Center in Charleston, W.Va.

West Virginia State Senator Richard N. Ojeda II (D – Logan, 07) poses for a portrait in Logan, W.V., on Thursday, February 22, 2018. Ojeda is seeking the democratic nomination to run for the 3rd congressional district.

Wyoming East students watch a free throw during the WVSSAC Class AA North Marion-Wyoming East girls basketball state championship at the Civic Center in Charleston, W.V., on Saturday, March 10, 2018.

Redskins cheer as Lindsey Phares runs to home plate after hitting a home run during the Hurricane High School-John Marshall softball game for the AAA state championship title in Vienna, W.V., on Wednesday, May 24, 2018

Hurricane High School Redskins celebrate their victory over Wheeling Park High School in the Class AAA state baseball championship at Power Park in Charleston, W.V., on Saturday, June 02, 2018

East Fairmont’s team captain Corey Fluharty hides his face in his shirt as Winfield celebrates their victory during the Winfield-East Fairmont AA-A boys State soccer championships at the YMCA Paul Cline Memorial Youth Sports Complex in Beckley, W.Va., on November 03, 2018.

Former Timberwolves linebacker Owen Porter embraces Tyson Hall (22) after the team’s loss to the Martinsburg Bulldogs in the the Class AAA WVSSAC championship football game at Wheeling Park Stadium in Wheeling, W.V., on Saturday, December 01, 2018.

West Virginia Mountaineers defensive lineman Reese Donahue (46) kisses his girlfriend Sarah Moore after proposing to her following the mountaineers victory over the University of Kansas Jayhawks with a final score of 38-22 in Morgantown, W. Va., Saturday Oct. 6, 2018. (AP Photo/Craig Hudson).

Monserrate. Bogotá, 
Colombia

Villa De Leyva, Colombia

Villa De Leyva, Colombia

Chingaza National Natural Park. Colombia

Fall is in full swing at the Glade Creek Grist Mill inside Babcock State Park near Clifftop, W.Va., on Saturday, October 27, 2018.

WVA Manufacturing. Alloy, W.V.

Lightning over the Kanawha River. Charleston, W.Va.

The John E. Amos power plant is seen from a field outside of Winfield, W,Va., on Thursday night, August 23, 2018. Built in the 1970’s, the plant is the largest in the American Electric Power system. Many of AEP’s smaller coal-fired power plants in Appalachia closed in response to environmental regulations such as the Clean Power Plan in 2015.