The Council for Advancement and Support of Education (CASE) District IV Conference was Monday in Oklahoma City. The district includes more than 50 universities, organizations and PR firms across Arkansas, Louisiana, Mexico, Oklahoma, Texas and New Mexico.
I was lucky enough to win silver (second place) in the category: feature writing less than 1,000 words. As you can imagine, I’m completely stoked to add another award to the record books!!
Follow the link to my winning piece: http://www.egr.uh.edu/news/1008/?e=ikerelief
Tuesday, April 7, 2009
Sunday, February 1, 2009
Second One Down...
It's finished. The first issue EVER of The Cougar Engineer!
Read it online at the link below:
Friday, December 12, 2008
It's Beginning to Look a Lot Like Christmas
Texas weather is wacky. Tuesday was near 75 degrees, but on Wednesday ...
Snow for the first time in five years.
Snow for the first time in five years.
Sweet Ride
I spent a windy Saturday recently interviewing my first subject for a super fun section in the new alumni magazine.It's intended to serve as the eye catching, opening spread in the magazine. A double-truck of something, well, out of the ordinary.
Scott Elmer, a graduate of the college's department of civil and environmental engineering, certainly fit the bill. He's spent the last 10 years testing his nerves and his stomach jumping from planes. Yes, he's a city engineer and public works director by day and a skydiver on most weekends. He's taken some 4,000 jumps and competed in skydiving competitions both nationally and internationally.
Needless to say, we had an awesome time! I even had my first trip in the cockpit of an airplane. Let me tell you, it was the perfect day for this trip. The sky was so clear I could see to the coast of Galveston. I even got to wear the headset!!!
The sweetest part of this ride, though, was near the end. Unlike your typical flight, the pilot and I came back much lighter than when we left. I watched Scott and 13 other skydivers leap from the hatch and free fall to the ground. Maybe next time I'll join them :)
Scott Elmer, a graduate of the college's department of civil and environmental engineering, certainly fit the bill. He's spent the last 10 years testing his nerves and his stomach jumping from planes. Yes, he's a city engineer and public works director by day and a skydiver on most weekends. He's taken some 4,000 jumps and competed in skydiving competitions both nationally and internationally.
Needless to say, we had an awesome time! I even had my first trip in the cockpit of an airplane. Let me tell you, it was the perfect day for this trip. The sky was so clear I could see to the coast of Galveston. I even got to wear the headset!!!
The sweetest part of this ride, though, was near the end. Unlike your typical flight, the pilot and I came back much lighter than when we left. I watched Scott and 13 other skydivers leap from the hatch and free fall to the ground. Maybe next time I'll join them :)
Saturday, November 1, 2008
In The Spirit of Halloween
I’ve always loved a good scare. This has driven me to see all the classic horror flicks – The Exorcist, Halloween, Rosemary’s Baby, It, Night of the Living Dead, The Thing, Amityville Horror and a few others so poorly made their almost funny. I’ve traveled to haunted cornfields and the cheesy staged haunted houses.
A few years ago, when the editor at the newspaper I was working at came to me looking for a “different” Halloween story all I could do was grin. I knew exactly what I was going to do – scare the pants off myself and hopefully a few readers.
In pursuit of this, I headed directly to the library, then the Internet to do a little research. What did I find? Well, some pretty wild tales of haunted areas across the city.
I made sure to pinpoint the creepiest one, loaded a staff photographer and navigated in the dark to the outskirts of the city.What I found when I arrived was a scene right out of some of the best horror films. The wind was blowing, stirring the leaves that had already begun to fall from the trees. A wrought iron-gate leading to the circa 1800s church, completely surrounded by old gravestones mind you, was creaking loudly.
It was literally perfect!
To see what happened, follow the link: http://www.erinrickert.com/html/ghost.html
A few years ago, when the editor at the newspaper I was working at came to me looking for a “different” Halloween story all I could do was grin. I knew exactly what I was going to do – scare the pants off myself and hopefully a few readers.
In pursuit of this, I headed directly to the library, then the Internet to do a little research. What did I find? Well, some pretty wild tales of haunted areas across the city.
I made sure to pinpoint the creepiest one, loaded a staff photographer and navigated in the dark to the outskirts of the city.What I found when I arrived was a scene right out of some of the best horror films. The wind was blowing, stirring the leaves that had already begun to fall from the trees. A wrought iron-gate leading to the circa 1800s church, completely surrounded by old gravestones mind you, was creaking loudly.
It was literally perfect!
To see what happened, follow the link: http://www.erinrickert.com/html/ghost.html
Thursday, October 30, 2008
End of Week Inspiration
I find myself reading lots of different publications to see how others are getting their message across. The one I read today had a special section devoted to taking your alumni magazine to new heights. Crafting an new alumni magazine is exactly what I’m in the midst of at the college.
After reading this excerpt from a veteran editor with 20 years experience, I think I’m inspired. How about you?
“News informs. Stories change lives. Changing lives is the essence of our business. It is, finally, the product we sell – and a very expensive product it is, with very many competitors. Magazines are the coolest genre there is to tell stories about changing lives. They’re tactile and funny. They’re the verb, not the noun. If we use these vehicles for only news, we are making them Pintos. If we seek only balance between news and story, we make them midsize sedans. If we seek to make every page carry a story of weight – prayer, humor, fury, poignancy, challenge, amazement, heart, bone – then we begin to make a magazine that a reader cannot ignore, cannot throw away, cannot help but read, cannot help but share, cannot help but respond to.”
After reading this excerpt from a veteran editor with 20 years experience, I think I’m inspired. How about you?
“News informs. Stories change lives. Changing lives is the essence of our business. It is, finally, the product we sell – and a very expensive product it is, with very many competitors. Magazines are the coolest genre there is to tell stories about changing lives. They’re tactile and funny. They’re the verb, not the noun. If we use these vehicles for only news, we are making them Pintos. If we seek only balance between news and story, we make them midsize sedans. If we seek to make every page carry a story of weight – prayer, humor, fury, poignancy, challenge, amazement, heart, bone – then we begin to make a magazine that a reader cannot ignore, cannot throw away, cannot help but read, cannot help but share, cannot help but respond to.”
Lending a Hand
I have one of those great professions. The kind of job requiring me to stop staring at my computer screen, throw on a pair of jeans and hit the road.
Most recently I loaded a bunch of engineering students in my car and joined a caravan to Bacliff. We spent the afternoon talking to each other like Darth Vader through ventilator masks. The masks were meant to protect us from mold while gutting a home ravaged by Hurricane Ike floodwaters.
By the time we left we were covered in rancid water and muck, but the gratitude shown by the women helped was all worth it.
Follow the link below to my story on the effort:
http://www.egr.uh.edu/news/1008/?e=ikerelief
Most recently I loaded a bunch of engineering students in my car and joined a caravan to Bacliff. We spent the afternoon talking to each other like Darth Vader through ventilator masks. The masks were meant to protect us from mold while gutting a home ravaged by Hurricane Ike floodwaters.
By the time we left we were covered in rancid water and muck, but the gratitude shown by the women helped was all worth it.
Follow the link below to my story on the effort:
http://www.egr.uh.edu/news/1008/?e=ikerelief
Thursday, October 23, 2008
It's Here ... The New Parameters Magazine
The newly redesigned Parameters magazine dropped last week. Take a peek at weeks of hard work on my first magazine!
See it at http://www.egr.uh.edu/parameters/#
See it at http://www.egr.uh.edu/parameters/#
Monday, October 6, 2008
Ike Inspired Copy
I've been working on several hurricane-related stories as the Greater Houston area continues to recover from Hurricane Ike's blow three weeks ago.
Here's a taste of what I've created. Happy reading!
http://www.egr.uh.edu/news/0908/?e=hurricane
http://www.egr.uh.edu/news/0908/?e=thunderhorse
Here's a taste of what I've created. Happy reading!
http://www.egr.uh.edu/news/0908/?e=hurricane
http://www.egr.uh.edu/news/0908/?e=thunderhorse
Saturday, September 20, 2008
We Survived Ike!
This nasty hurricane blew through Texas as a category 2 storm last week, leaving most of Houston without power and water. We were back up and running in four days, but many will not see power for another two weeks.
Those of us trying to get back to normalcy are still dealing with long gas lines (several hours), empty grocery store shelves, non-operational traffic signals and a citywide curfew.
Here are a few shots of some of the damage and flooding Houston sustained as a result of Ike.
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Those of us trying to get back to normalcy are still dealing with long gas lines (several hours), empty grocery store shelves, non-operational traffic signals and a citywide curfew.
Here are a few shots of some of the damage and flooding Houston sustained as a result of Ike.
Tuesday, August 12, 2008
Tough Topics
Spending a few years on the crime and courts beat can expose you to some pretty unimaginable stuff. The stuff you think can only be dreamt up in horror movies.
This piece reminded me of a few stories I had to choke through reporting during my time on the beat. It's some pretty intense stuff, but very well-done by both the reporter and photographer. It is sure to pull at your heart strings.
http://www.tampabay.com/specials/2008/reports/danielle/
This piece reminded me of a few stories I had to choke through reporting during my time on the beat. It's some pretty intense stuff, but very well-done by both the reporter and photographer. It is sure to pull at your heart strings.
http://www.tampabay.com/specials/2008/reports/danielle/
Friday, August 1, 2008
It's Official ... (UPDATE)
UPDATE: Ok. So I finally have all the wedding images from our photographer, Jamie Fender. Although I have hundreds, I'm just sharing a few from the day. Enjoy!!
Kevin and I were married earlier last month. Our plan for a laid back ceremony on the sands of the North Carolina Outer Banks happened under a sunny skyline and among all our closest friends and family. I am sharing a few "teaser" photographs from our photographer, Jamie Fender, as well as some from family.
The rest of the professional shots won't be ready for another few weeks. You will see a few from our trash the dress session the morning after the wedding. We had a great time splashing around in the waves, and yes, I did officially trash my dress. The pictures are worth it, though! Enjoy! There will be more to come, I'm sure.
Kevin and I were married earlier last month. Our plan for a laid back ceremony on the sands of the North Carolina Outer Banks happened under a sunny skyline and among all our closest friends and family. I am sharing a few "teaser" photographs from our photographer, Jamie Fender, as well as some from family.
The rest of the professional shots won't be ready for another few weeks. You will see a few from our trash the dress session the morning after the wedding. We had a great time splashing around in the waves, and yes, I did officially trash my dress. The pictures are worth it, though! Enjoy! There will be more to come, I'm sure.
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