Award-winning photographer

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Republished from March 19, 2001

Steve Jessmore, ’81, doesn’t circle the globe to find his world-class subjects.

Jessmore, chief photographer for The Flint Journal, finds a universe of captivating images within the local communities where he lives and works.

The award-winning photographer recently earned the Journalism Distinguished Alumni Award, given annually to a graduate who has made significant contributions to the field and represented the department with distinction, says Guy Meiss, journalism department chairman.

“Steve was chosen for his story-telling ability and his compassion for the subjects he covers,” he says. “He makes sure each story is effectively told and explored in all of its dimensions.”

In conjunction, dozens of Jessmore’s photographs were displayed in two campus locations last October.

Jessmore specializes in picture stories found within the communities that he covers, including “Blind Faith,” which follows the progression of a yellow lab from a puppy into a leader dog for the blind. Jessmore won several awards for the series, including the Robert F. Kennedy Journalism Award for Outstanding Coverage of the Problems of the Disadvantaged.

“My family is the main reason for my focus on community,” says Jessmore, who was named the National Press Photographers Association Newspaper Photographer of the Year for a four-state region in 1996. “I never wanted a job that would keep me away from them. It forced me to look in my own backyard for stories, making me a better community journalist today.”

Jessmore met his wife, Lisa (Renuis) Jessmore, ’82, when both worked at Central Michigan Life. They live in Frankenmuth and have three children: Andrew, Alex and Lindsay.

He described the student newspaper as a “real-world testing ground.”

“CM Life probably gave me the best opportunity to apply what I was learning,” says Jessmore, who earned the Michigan Press Photographers Association Barry Edmonds Michigan Understanding Award in 1995 and 1998. “The feedback I received from students and teachers was inspiring, yet at times it could be devastating when mistakes were made. It made the learning curve that much faster.”

Jessmore, who was named MPPA photographer of the year from 1995 to 1998, considers himself a journalist first, thanks to former teacher Elliott Parker, who encouraged him to pursue a journalism major.

Other professors who made an impact include Ron Marmarelli, currently a part-time instructor; the late Stan Bradshaw; Sue Nichols, who is retired and lives in Toledo; the late Tom Rood; Michael Petrick, who recently retired but still teaches; and CM Life adviser Jim Wojcik.

He also credits several fellow CM Life staffers: Roger Hart, ’80, who is now editor of the Daily Telegram in Adrian; J. Kyle Keener, ’83, assistant director of photography at the Detroit Free Press; Steve Fecht, ’80, director of photography at the Detroit News; and Cathy Curtis-Kozak, ’80, director of photography at America Online.

“I have no regrets,” says Jessmore, who took first place in the reporting of education category in the nationwide Lincoln University of Missouri’s 43rd Annual Unity Awards in Media in 1996. “I truly enjoy telling the stories of my community. I find it challenging to find fresh ideas in mid-Michigan, where I’ve lived my entire life. I know they exist, though, and so the quest continues.”