Those were the days before the COVID-19 virus when we could all cheer together without social distancing. Cadets cheer for the Falcons men’s basketball team against Utah State Tuesday, Jan. 7, 2020, during the second half at Clune Arena on the Air Force Academy in Colorado Springs Colo. Air Force won 79-60. (CHRISTIAN MURDOCK/THE GAZETTE)
I’ll never forget 2020. As a veteran photojournalist I’ve covered fires, hurricanes, floods and other natural disasters. You can see the dangers involved with them. COVID-19 was different. You couldn’t see the danger, only the damage from the virus. The lives and jobs lost. I also saw the good in people through difficult times. The block dancing parties, the teachers and community who celebrated the senior class with parades, and banners, and neighbors reaching out to help each other through the year. I’ll never forget this year, but I’m ready to move on to 2021.
Those were the days before the COVID-19 virus when we could all cheer together without social distancing. Cadets cheer for the Falcons men’s basketball team against Utah State Tuesday, Jan. 7, 2020, during the second half at Clune Arena on the Air Force Academy in Colorado Springs Colo. Air Force won 79-60. (CHRISTIAN MURDOCK/THE GAZETTE)Pilot Bill Klaers, left, and his son co-pilot Scott Klaers make a pass over the memorial service for Pearl Harbor survivor Don Stratton in a World War II-era B-25 bomber Saturday, Feb. 29, 2020, above the Rocky Mountain Calvary in Colorado Springs. Stratton, 97, who died Feb. 15, was one of three remaining survivors from the bombing and sinking of the USS Arizona during the Pearl Harbor attack by the Japanese on Dec. 7, 1941. A crew from WestPac and the National Museum of World War II Aviation flew over the memorial service to honor Stratton. (CHRISTIAN MURDOCK/THE GAZETTE)All of a sudden the school year came to an end. Madeline Stesney of Denver, center in yellow T-shirt, and the rest of 2020 senior class at Colorado College have a bitter-sweet celebration at the school flagpole Wednesday, as student begin their spring break and possible the end of the school year on campus. The college in Colorado Springs extended its spring break to two weeks and plan to teach the next block of classes online to curb the threat of the Coronavirus. The celebration at the flagpole is traditionally on the last day of classes for the year. (CHRISTIAN MURDOCK/THE GAZETTE)Baseball returned without the fans. Major League Baseball Authenticator Todd Fuller places a label on a cutout of former Colorado Rockies Chris Iannetta (2006-2011, 2018-2019) before the start of the Colorado Rockies home opener at Coors Field in Denver July 31, 2020. Cutoff of former Rockies and the mascot Dinger populated the stands behind homeplate. The cutouts from the home opener will be auctioned later for the charity. The teams played before an empty stadium because of COVID-19. (CHRISTIAN MURDOCK/THE GAZETTE)A scary afternoon. A chinook helicopter drops water on a wildfire near Bear Creek Regional Park on the westside of Colorado Springs, Colo., Thursday, Nov. 19, 2020. About 235 homes were evacuated near the park as firefighters battled the fire on the ground and in the air. (Christian Murdock/The Gazette)Beautiful Colorado. The rising sun highlights the turning aspens surrounding the Crystal Mill near Marble, Colo., Tuesday, Sept. 29, 2020. The mill was built in 1893 to power the air compressor to run drills in the nearby Sheep Mountain and Bear Mountain mines. It closed in 1917. Today it’s one of the most photographed spots in Colorado. (Christian Murdock/The Gazette)Dancing through COVID-19. The Ebell family, Ivan, left, Lara, June and Torry, dance outside their home on Corona Street in Colorado Springs Friday night, March 27, 2020, during a city wide Neighborhood Dance Party. Residents turned up their car radios to local stations playing the same music and danced while abiding by the state’s stay-at-home order to fight the COVID-19 virus. The dancing allowed neighbors to feel connected but safely separated. (CHRISTIAN MURDOCK/THE GAZETTE)Exploring a wonderland. Seth Boster climbs into the canyon below the rock formations of the Wheeler Geologic Area Monday, July 6, 2020. (CHRISTIAN MURDOCK/THE GAZETTE)Erosion over millions of years has created the unique rock formations in the Wheeler Geologic Area as seen Monday, July 6, 2020. (CHRISTIAN MURDOCK/THE GAZETTE)Sunflowers frame the sun as it rises over Trinidad Lake State Park Tuesday, Aug. 18, 2020, in sourthern Colorado. (CHRISTIAN MURDOCK/THE GAZETTE)A budding star. Camille Goodwin, 19, of Pueblo West, practices her tricks on Lake Pueblo Thursday, Sept. 17, 2020. Goodwin, who started wake surfing at 11, is ranked fifth in the world in the Pro Women Skim division by the Competitive Wake Surfing Association. (CHRISTIAN MURDOCK/THE GAZETTE)Summer air. Celia Miller of Frisco, Colo., sails over a feature in Copper Mountain’s Central Park Thursday, July 16, 2020, during Woodward Copper’s day camp. The ski resort’s overnight camps were canceled because of the COVID-19 pandemic, but daily classes are being offered through Aug. 15. (CHRISTIAN MURDOCK/THE GAZETTE)The NHL played outdoors at Air Force Academy last season. The setting sun reflects on the glass boards as Avalanche left wing Gabriel Landeskog skates around the ice during practice Feb. 14, 2020, at Falcon Stadium on the eve of their Stadium Series game against the Los Angeles Kings. (Gazette file photo)Social distancing fly over. The class of 2020 toss their hats into the air as the Thunderbirds fly over Saturday, April 18, 2020, at the conclusion of the Air Force Academy graduation on the terrazzo of the Air Force Academy in Colorado Springs, Colo. The graduation was a closed ceremony at the center of campus rather than Falcon Stadium to allow the cadets to stay 8 feet apart. The cadets didn’t march on stage to receive their diplomas and high fives and hugs were banned. (CHRISTIAN MURDOCK/THE GAZETTE)Hair to go. Kari Vince washes client Kim Surry’s hair with the help of her cat Moonbeam Wednesday, Feb. 12, 2020, inside her Hair & There mobile salon outside her Larkspur, Colo., home. (CHRISTIAN MURDOCK/THE GAZETTE)Protesters march down Pikes Peak Avenue in Colorado Springs shutting down traffic Saturday, May 30, 2020, during a Black Lives Matter rally. About 1,000 protesters marched in Downtown Colorado Springs. Protests have been erupting all over the country after George Floyd died earlier this week in police custody in Minneapolis. (The Gazette, Christian Murdock) (CHRISTIAN MURDOCK/THE GAZETTE)Protesters march outside the Police Operation Center Sunday, May 31, 2020, on the second night of protesting in Colorado Springs, Colo., over the death of George Floyd, a black man who died after being restrained by Minneapolis police officers on May 25. Protesters began marching Sunday morning outside the Colorado Springs City Hall before ending the night outside the police station. Early Monday morning police broke up the crowd, arresting those who wouldn’t disband. (CHRISTIAN MURDOCK/THE GAZETTE)Protesters surround a Colorado Springs police car as they march through downtown Colorado Springs Saturday, May 30, 2020, during a Black Lives Matter rally. About 1,000 protesters marched in Downtown Colorado Springs. Protests erupted all over the country after George Floyd died in police custody in Minneapolis. (CHRISTIAN MURDOCK/THE GAZETTE)Protesters run from the tear gas as police try to control the crowd marching along Nevada Avenue in Colorado Springs, Colo., Saturday night, May 30, 2020, after rioters broke windows at the Police Operation Center in Colorado Springs. (CHRISTIAN MURDOCK/THE GAZETTE)Rioters kick a tear gas canister along Nevada Avenue in downtown Colorado Springs Saturday, May 30, 2020, after chaos spread after protesters vandalized the Police Operation Center. (CHRISTIAN MURDOCK/THE GAZETTE)Colorado Springs police form a wall outside the the Police Operation Center Sunday, May 31, 2020, on the second night of protesting in Colorado Springs, Colo., over the death of George Floyd, a black man who died after being restrained by Minneapolis police officers on May 25. Protesters began marching Sunday morning outside the Colorado Springs City Hall before ending the night outside the police station. Early Monday morning police broke up the crowd, arresting those whom wouldn’t disband. (CHRISTIAN MURDOCK)Protesters shield themselves from Colorado Springs police outside the downtown headquarters in June. Police begin to break up the crowd on the second night of protesting over the death of George Floyd, a Black man who died after being restrained by Minneapolis police officers on May 25. (THE GAZETTE)A counter protester jesters to the crowd marching outside the Police Operation Center Sunday, May 31, 2020, before being detained by police on the second night of protesting in Colorado Springs, Colo., over the death of George Floyd, a black man who died after being restrained by Minneapolis police officers on May 25. Protesters began marching Sunday morning outside the Colorado Springs City Hall before ending the night outside the police station. Early Monday morning police broke up the crowd, arresting those who wouldn’t disband. (CHRISTIAN MURDOCK)From the ashes. Rich Muegge helps his grandson, Chandler Muegge, 5, cut his chuckwagon dinner Thursday, July 9, 2020, during the Flying W Ranch’s soft opening after being closed since it was destroyed in the 2012 Waldo Canyon Fire. The hard opening is Friday. (CHRISTIAN MURDOCK/THE GAZETTE)Preparing for the worst. Jason Horn of the Springs Rescue Mission sets up cots in the City Auditorium Wednesday, April 1, 2020, as the Colorado Springs rescue mission sets up an isolation shelter for homeless people with symptoms of the COVID-19 virus, or who are discharged from hospitals after having been treated for it. (CHRISTIAN MURDOCK/THE GAZETTE)The reality of COVID-19. Eric Peterson, 59, tries to hold back his tears as he talks Friday, April 24, 2020, about the last conversation he had with his mother, Marion Peterson, 87, as she lay dying in the hospital from the COVID-19 virus. Peterson and his wife, Victoria, left, spent the day at his mother’s Colorado Springs townhouse sorting through her belongings and the family’s memories. (CHRISTIAN MURDOCK/THE GAZETTE)Michael Marchese sprays sanitizer on the hand rails of a bus while he and a crew clean Tuesday night, April 7 at the Mountain Metro Transit bus barn in Colorado Springs, Colo. The cleaning crew always uses sanitizer to clean the buses, but to combat the COVID-19 virus, the buses were first sprayed with a hospital-grade disinfectant. (CHRISTIAN MURDOCK/THE GAZETTE)Honoring the Class of 2020. Palmer High School history and journalism teacher Courtney Bzymek, right, cheers for the class of 2020 with her colleagues at the Colorado Springs school Wednesday, May 20, 2020, during a parade before their virtual graduation. The pre-COVID-19 virus graduation was originally scheduled for Friday, May 22. Bzymek hadn’t seen her students in person since March 13 when El Paso County schools closed for an early spring break because of the pandemic. She never thought that would be the last time she saw them before graduation. (CHRISTIAN MURDOCK/THE GAZETTE)The winner is. District Attorney candidate Michael Allen celebrates with his wife, Heidi, Tuesday, June 30, 2020, during a gathering of supporters at Street Car 520 in Colorado Springs after early results showed him leading Mark Waller in the 4th Judicial District Attorney Republican primary race. (CHRISTIAN MURDOCK/THE GAZETTE)Air Force One with President Donald Trump on board arrives at Peterson Air Force Base in February in Colorado Springs. The president held a rally at The Broadmoor World Arena. (CHRISTIAN MURDOCK, THE GAZETTE)President Donald Trump speaks during a rally at The Broadmoor World Arena on Feb. 20, 2020, during his visit to Colorado Springs. (CHRISTIAN MURDOCK, THE GAZETTE file)A new summit house. Temperatures hover around 10 degrees as crews work on the outside of the new Pikes Peak Summit Complex Monday, Sept. 28, 2020, on the top of 14,115-foot Pikes Peak. The 38,000-square-foot summit house is expected to open by Summer of 2021. (Christian Murdock/The Gazette)Transforming downtown Colorado Springs. Crews set the 250-foot, 300-ton pedestrian bridge into place Monday, Oct. 5, 2020, over the railroad tracks between America the Beautiful Park and the United States Olympic and Paralympics Museum in downtown Colorado Spring. The bridge, which is part fo the southwest downtown improvements project, will open in early 2021. (CHRISTIAN MURDOCK/THE GAZETTE)A tragedy from the past. A young couple from Minnesota, Jordan and Nikki, look through the remains of the Martin 404 twin-engine plane Wednesday, Sept. 23, 2020, that was carrying members of the Wichita State University football team and staff when it crashed into the side of Mt. Trelease Oct. 2, 1970, near the Loveland Ski Area, killing 31 people. The plane was one of two carrying the football team and support staff from Wichita, Kans., to Logan, Utah for a game against Utah State. The other plane took the northern route over Wyoming while the plane carrying the first team and coaches took a scenic route through the Colorado mountains. (CHRISTIAN MURDOCK/THE GAZETTE)A summer of fires. The sun burns through the smoky skies Sunday morning, Aug. 23, 2020, as seen from the A-Frame at tree line on 14,115-foot Pikes Peak. The smoke was from the fires burning in Colorado. (CHRISTIAN MURDOCK/THE GAZETTE)A hockey family. Brian “Glide” Hayes, 78, is the first one on the ice for the Victor Penguins practice Wednesday night, Jan. 22, 2020. The outdoor ice rink in the 1890s mining town is named Brian’s Park after him. (CHRISTIAN MURDOCK/THE GAZETTE)The Victor Penguins practice into the night Wednesday, Jan. 22, 2020 on their outdoor rink at 10,000 feet above sea level in the Colorado mining town. (CHRISTIAN MURDOCK/THE GAZETTE)Brian “Glide” Hayes, 78, started playing hockey in Victor, Colo., with teammate Gary Horton and their children in the 1980s on ice rink created with a city fire hydrant from a hill above. Glide was once called “the Real Penguin” by Bob Johnson, who coached the Stanley Cup winning Pittsburg Penguins 1990 and coached U.S. Hockey and Colorado College before that. Johnson played with his national team in the first Victor Cup. (CHRISTIAN MURDOCK/THE GAZETTE)The Victor Penguins practice on their outdoor ice rink Sunday, Jan. 19, 2020. Nearly 40 players skated on the Sunday. (CHRISTIAN MURDOCK/THE GAZETTE)Team bartender Karen Zietlowe hands out beers in the team’s warming hut after practice Sunday, Jan. 19, 2020. (CHRISTIAN MURDOCK/THE GAZETTE)Preparing for the race. Volunteers Adam Wade, left, and Tom Lear carry supplies down Barr Trail from the top of 14,115-foot Pikes Peak to the aid station at A-Frame 3 miles below Wednesday, Aug. 19, 2020, as they prepare for the Pikes Peak Marathon. The Pikes Peak Ascent was canceled this year because of COVID-19, but the marathon will go on with precautions. All of the supplies for A-Frame must be carried down the mountain. The smoke in the valley below was from the Colorado wildfires. (CHRISTIAN MURDOCK/THE GAZETTE)Job well done. Colorado Springs firefighters knock down a fire under the South Nevada Avenue bridge over Fountain Creek and the bicycle path Thursday morning, Sept. 24, 2020. Dark, black smoke could be seen as far away as downtown Colorado Springs and the Southgate area. (CHRISTIAN MURDOCK/THE GAZETTE)Merry Christmas. The traditional Christmas tree on the top of the Manitou Springs Incline greets a hiker as he reaches the top of the .9-mile trail with about a 2,000-foot elevation gain on a cold, snowy morning Tuesday, Dec. 15, 2020. (CHRISTIAN MURDOCK/THE GAZETTE)
