Photos of genocide survivors earn Airman top award

Published March 29, 2006
By Matt Clutter
96th Air Base Wing Public Affairs

EGLIN AIR FORCE BASE, Fla. -- There is another side to the Air Force, far beyond the horizon that is peppered with aircraft defending the nation's skies.

Tucked within neatly divided cubicles on bases all over the world are individuals responsible for maintaining and processing vital information and, in some cases, disseminating that information to the public.

More simply, some people are responsible for telling the Air Force story. And in Senior Airman Mike Meares' case, that story is more than just words.

For Airman Meares, 96th Air Base Wing public affairs, the Air Force-level award given to him last week for photojournalism now sits at the top of a long list of awards he's received for telling the Air Force story through his photographs and stories.

"The competition is fierce at the Air Force level," Airman Meares said, "so this is an honor. As great as this is, the real award is getting to do the job and tell the Air Force story."

Airman Meares seizes each moment through the lens of a camera. Whether he was capturing the brotherhood of Eglin's fire department by scaling a 100-foot ladder during a ceremony honoring a fallen firefighter or walking in chest-high swamps with the Rangers, Airman Meares has put it all in photographs to pad an already hefty portfolio.

But it was a piece on deployed Airmen donating soccer balls and school supplies to Rwandan orphans and genocide survivors in Africa that finally garnered him the Air Force's top award for photojournalism.

"(His photos) just stood out among the crowd simply because of the character and the emotion," said Master Sgt. Gary Kubich, associate editor of Messenger Magazine for U.S. military entrance processing command, one of the judges for the event. "He didn't just let the text tell the story. You could feel the emotion in his photos, and the design added to it."

Among the awards Airman Meares has already won for his work in newspapers while in the Air Force are four first places, seven second places and two third places. That includes 2004 and 2005 runners-up for Print Journalist of the Year and the top stand-alone photo in the Air Force Medical Center in 2005.

How he became such a decorated photographer happened on a whim. Airman Meares needed one elective course to fill out his schedule at Polk Community College in Winter Haven, Fla. He chose photography.

"That elective turned out to be my passion," Airman Meares said. "I see the world differently through a camera."

The rest is history for the 2005 AFMC Public Affairs Airman of the Year. He's experienced a lot that the Air Force has to offer with a camera in tow and came away with some of the most engaging images this side of an art museum.

Among other things, he's covered four NASCAR races and anchored the cover of several special editions of the Eglin Eagle (base newspaper) with just one of his photos. A photo he took during his days in Air Force Space Command was published in Airman magazine's The Book, which is one of several that have printed in the magazine.

"He gives a fantastic perspective," said Col. Dean Clemons, 96th Air Base Wing vice commander. "He is an extraordinary talent now recognized as an Air Force-wide talent uniquely qualified to move forward our award-winning paper through his photos."

Yes, things have been going pretty well for Airman Meares as of late. On the heels of his recent award, he was named a Sharp Troop by the Eglin Chiefs' Group. Plus, he's engaged to be married to his fiancée, Stephanie, in April.

Of course, since he's one of the stars of that show, the question remains: Who's going to take those pictures?