This photo of Home Federal’s Kash Kalkowski (left) running down Ryan Daly of Omaha Westside for a fifth-inning out Saturday (6/7) at Ryder Park didn’t make the paper, but I like it a lot. Kalkowski hit a grand slam and a two-run homer during the game, so we ran a photo of him celebrating at home plate with his teammates after the second home run.

After several apartments in the Bellwood Square Apartments complex are evacuated, Grand Island police Sgt. Dale Hilderbrand moves into position before police entered an apartment where the occupant was believed to have a weapon, and had threatened to kill himself. The occupant, whose name has yet to be released, was pronounced deceased shortly after officers entered the apartment at about 5:45 p.m. Tuesday (6/10). It’s amazing to see police officers doing their jobs in this type of situation. To face the potential risks involved, and then have to deal with the tragic ending. That’s a tough job there. The people at left appear closer than they are due to the compression effect caused by using a 728mm lens to take the photo from a long distance away.

One of the great things about this job is the people you get to meet along the way. Often it’s the people who are quietly doing things to make a difference in the lives of others that make a big impression. Kevin Bogus, 19, of Grand Island blows bubbles while (from left) Brandon Molt, Lydia Molt, Brittany Armstrong and Delanie Bonsack watch on the playground outside the Third City Christian Church in Grand Island. Bogus and others care for special-needs children to allow their families time to do other things for a while about once a month at the church.

This is my favorite photo from the few hours I spent at Sucks Lake in Grand Island covering a “Baby Boom” of ducklings and goslings there. The resulting package ran as a photo page last Saturday (5/31/08). Hard to go wrong with baby animals, but I also like the reflections in the water.

Yes, it’s just a photo of some jars, but it feels like I’m looking into the past on a porch on a warm summer day on the plains. Which is a good thing since it is really part of a museum display. Or, it could just be in my mind. Either way, this photo ran as the lead photo in a package on our weekly food page. Different aspects of food related production, storage, commerce and dining are featured in Stuhr Museum’s new “Vittles: Flavors Across the Plains” exhibit, including an area devoted to canning and preserving.