Iris Imaging

This is Russell Kennedy. I organized a photo project on homelessness in the 90’s, in which 9 other photographers participated, the Akron Beacon Journal helped supported the project and featured it in their Sunday Magazine. This picture was one of the photos in the article.

I had photographed and gotten to know Russel about ten years earlier 83-84. A member of his family contacted me and filled me in about his life after the article ran. 

Russell M. Kennedy parents were divorced when he was young, and his dad died shortly after the divorce. He was raised by his paternal grandparents and seldom saw his mother.

Russell was a Navy veteran.

He worked for Ohio Bell starting as lineman and was promoted to an inside job. Russell worked a lot of overtime. He and his wife lived in a post-war duplex which they were in the process of buying. As result of his drinking, he fell down the steps damaging his head enough to require a plate in his head. He retired from Ohio Bell after his fall. Because of his drinking and a change in his behavior his wife divorced him, and he retired from his job at Ohio Bell.  

His relationship with his grandparents deteriorated. His grandfather became angry that Russell would not come to see his grandmother when she was dying.

Russell had once stated when they died, and he got their money he would use it buy a big Cadillac. His grandfather removed him from the will and left everything to a neighbor who took care of him as he was dying.

I began to photograph the streets in 1983 and this photograph was one of the first. Russell was sitting on the east side of the old City Mission building at 408 West Saint Clair. I sat down in front of him with my camera just focusing on him for several minutes and then took a couple of photographs. He never reacted, he just sat looking at his newspaper. I moved to his side, took another picture, and left. A few days later I saw him again and asked if he would sign a model release which he did. Then printed the picture and started looking for Russell.

St. Malachi is a church located on the west side of Detroit Superior Bridge, which has a number of wonderful ministries such as feeding the poor and was a meeting place for Alcoholics Anonymous. I had seen Russell getting a meal there in the past so I thought they might know more about him. Reverend Paul J. Hritz, answered the door and I showed him the picture of who I was looking for and let him know that I had model release. He told me knew Russell and he lived under the Detroit Superior Bridge, which was across the street, and then he asked me a question.

What made me think Russell was component to sign a model release? 

It floored me, and it started my involvement in the life of Russell M. Kennedy over the next year.

Was he competent? Thought Reverend  Hritz was right at the time. However, time has made me understand that the question of competency is much more complex than the circumstances one lives in.

Crossing the street and going underneath the bridge, it was beautiful like a cathedral. On the side bridge were some cloths scattered but no Russell. As I left there was a stack of rocks which sent a chill down my spine. It is hard to explain it was like an Old Testament altar.

I continued to photograph downtown Cleveland until winter set in and engaged him in conversation whenever I saw him. He ate at the City Mission. He liked to read, and I would see him in the library at times.  
 
Except for a few important things my life was becoming another version of Russell’s. Homelessness was already something I had already experienced four times in my life. Prior to meeting Russell, I too had destroyed one of my most important relationship at that time. A short while later I quit my job as an ophthalmic photographer at the Cleveland Clinic. Slowly sold off my personal possessions to survive with the exception of one camera and my clothes.

However, unlike Russell, I had not destroyed all of my personal relationships and by Gods’ grace had overcome the last of my addictions. Started going to church and studying the Bible. The more I lost the wealthier and stronger I became as I learned about walking by faith.

According to the National Weather Service “Christmas of 1983 was the coldest Christmas ever with blizzard conditions across northeast Ohio and northwest Pennsylvania.  The combination of the arctic cold temperatures and the wide-open Great Lakes set the stage for the development of a Lake Effect blizzard.  Snow fell across northern Ohio and northwest Pennsylvania on December 24th and 25th.  Winds of 40 to 50 mph whipped between 6 and 20 inches of new snow into 10 to15 foot drifts. Temperatures on Christmas morning were -10 to -15 degrees in southern Ohio and near Lake Erie.  Elsewhere across the area temperatures fell to -15 to -20 degrees.”

I assume that he spent Christmas in the hospital because he lost most of his fingers to frostbite Christmas Eve, living under the bridge.