Portraits
Logan Schwartz (middle) had his football season cut short after surviving a near-fatal car accident during the summer of 2023. Here he is seen with his parents, Miles and Missy Schwartz at the Freeport High School football field on Nov. 3, 2023.
Sue Cram, Chairman of the Court Street United Methodist Thanksgiving committee, has planned and executed the yearly free Thanksgiving meal event for decades. Here she sits in the pews in the chapel of Court Street United Methodist Church on Oct. 26, 2023.
Sally Mark, president of Churchill’s Grove Neighborhood Association, helped spread the idea of “Sprinkler Alley” to neighbors after being asked by IRONMAN 70.3 Rockford volunteers to help cool down runners, pictured on Thursday, June 26, 2025, on National Avenue in Rockford.
Brad Rudoff, who was brought on to the team as director of training for Travis County Firemen, has the goal of valuing and nurturing the character of crew members. Here he is pictured at the Travis County fire station on Sept. 8, 2022.
Andrew Kurien, junior track athlete from Rockford Christian School on Sunday, April 7, 2024, at the Talcott Building in downtown Rockford.
Hunter Kennedy for The Daily Texan
Keith Fahrney, pictured on Friday, May 2, 3034, sits in his jeep that helped him stop a string of stabbings in a Rockford neighborhood one month earlier. Fahrney was labeled a community champion and good samaritan after pulling over to help victims and attempt to stop alleged attacker Christian Soto.
Ja'nell Ajani for The Daily Texan.
Goldie Pekarsky, a second-generation Holocaust survivor and longtime Rockford resident, hosts an annual Holocaust memorial at the Midway Village Museum, pictured on April 29, 2025, at Temple Beth-El in Rockford.
Director and co-owner of Hoo Haven Karen Herdklotz stands in their hospital building with Snapper the pelican on Thursday, March 21, 2024, at Hoo Haven in Durand, Illinois. Snapper, a year-long resident of Hoo Haven, was taken in after being found with a ripped gular pouch which prohibited him from being able to eat and drink.
Jenna Newcomb’s mother Tabatha Newcomb and stepfather Robb Banta pose for a portrait with Jenna’s urn on Monday, May 6, 2024, at their family home. Jenna Newcomb, 15-years-old, was a victim of a mass stabbing in a Rockford neighborhood in March, whom died while protecting her sister and friend.
Alex Stagnaro-Green, dean of the University of Illinois College Of Medicine Rockford, sits in a classroom Tuesday, Dec. 3, 2024. The University Of Illinois College Of Medicine Rockford is a finalist for the 2024 Excelsior Award presented by the Community Foundation of Northern Illinois, Northern Illinois Center for Nonprofit Excellence and the Rockford Register Star.
Jake Bradt, founder and CEO of Rockford Buzz, poses for a portrait in front of Rockford staple “Symbol” on Thursday, May 30, 2024, off of the Auburn Street Bridge.
Bella Candanosa for Covergirl.
Ginata Lopez for The Daily Texan.
Francie Larrieu Smith reflects on her winning the second-ever Cap 10K in 1979 at the Twin Lakes Family YMCA Trail Head on Thursday, April 6, 2023.
Cortlyn Hefty, senior soccer player from Belvidere North High School on Sunday, April 7, 2024, at the Talcott Building in downtown Rockford.
Rock River Development Partnership Executive Director Becca Bartels poses for a photograph Thursday, April 18, 2024, at the Rockford City Market building in downtown Rockford.