A LASTING IMPRESSION
From desperate escapes to motherly love, Star writers recall affecting stories from 2015 in part four of a series,
Debra Black, Immigration reporter Amal Radha’s story has haunted me since she told it to me. As a reporter you try really hard not to be affected by the people or events you cover. But sometimes that simply fails and your humanity wins out.
Such was the case with Radha’s story. Weeks after we met, I was still thinking about what it would feel like to come to Canada totally alone — with no money or friends. I can’t imagine packing up everything and leaving my home because I was a political target.
Her tale of running from Baghdad to Damascus to find safety after being kidnapped and assaulted was disturbing enough.
What she’d left behind made it worse. She still had two sisters and the three nephews she had helped raise in a United Nations refugee camp. But they’d gone missing.
Now, months later, when other stories I’ve worked on this year have faded, I still wonder: What happened to them? And I pick up the phone and check in with Amal, just to say hello. Lauren Pelley, Staff reporter Few stories have warmed my heart more than my April piece about a mysterious trunk filled with decades-old photos and love letters.
Its new owner, Sarah Di Domenico, was passionate about unravelling its past — and so was I. But was it possible to actually find Omar?
Against all odds, I tracked him down in a day after spotting a possible relative’s name in an obituary. Charming and droll, Omar hoped Sarah wasn’t “irritated by a young man’s follies.”
Far from it. The experience inspired her to curate a romantic, won- der-filled gallery exhibit — which I attended — based on those love letters.
The show’s name? “A Young Man’s Follies.” Sarah-Joyce Battersby, Staff reporter Thinking back on the year, I have Serena Ryder’s voice stuck in my head. Her Pan Am anthem played on a loop in my mind all summer as I covered the Games exclusively. There were important stories to tell, from executive bonuses to HOV lanes, but the one that stands out for me was a mother-and-son reunion at the opening ceremony.
Turns out, accessing an athlete for a sneak attack, even if it’s a hug from his mom, is nearly impossible during a highly controlled and choreographed event.
But Christine Thompson was persistent in her quest to see her son Cy, a sailor with the U.S. Virgin Islands team.
Together she and I stepped past security guards, finally making it as far as the front row, where Cy came over for a big hug.
For me, it was the first time the Games were more than a grumble. The athletes had stories that could warm even a cynical reporter’s heart. But part of the fun getting to this one was bypassing the Games organization, something that proved a challenge all summer long.