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Living the American Dream

© Wendy Folse

Richard McGrew is one of those people who picked up a camera at an early age and knew it had become a part of him. Richard's father was a newspaper publisher for a small weekly paper and Richard grew up around the business. In high school, he worked on the school paper.

At the age of 48, McGrew decided to break out of the small town clutches in of search the freedom of the road. He began his career of driving long haul trucks across America, but he never left his love of photography behind. McGrew began photographing and documenting the things that he saw along the way, collecting some 20,000 images from the cab of his truck.

McGrew followed his rainbow until he found the pot of gold. The stunning cover shot from his book says it all. When McGrew spotted the rainbow near Cane Beds, Arizona from the cab of his truck he knew it was meant for him. McGrew claims that it was "the turning point" and the sign that he needed to turn his dreams of photography into reality. It was then that he knew he wanted to complete his book and the rainbow that inspired his dream now adorns the cover.

The 59-year-old trucker now focuses his attention on his photography as much as his career. During long hours at rest stops and between breaks he uses his notebook computer to produce his book, storing his photo collection back home in a storage facility in Alabama.

McGrew has been featured on CBS News Sunday Morning, on the cover of AmericanProfile magazine and in Truckers News. He was invited to photograph the Passing of the Olympic Torch 2002 in Monument Valley and his book is on display at the Mystic Seaport Museum. McGrew was even granted special consideration by the Library of Congress who issued a card catalog number for the book.

Richard McGrew never forgot his roots and this year he returned to the Athens City schools to share with the students his vision and knowledge. Working with the students of Athens Middle School computer class, they developed over 400-images on Power Point putting together stunning multimedia presentations using McGrew's images. From the cab of his truck, McGrew collaborates with the students on writing and editing future books. McGrew was quoted as saying, "Working with these students and seeing the excitement in their eyes is a reward I never expected and which has made an impact on my life already."

The copyright of the article Living the American Dream in Photography is owned by Wendy Folse. Permission to republish Living the American Dream in print or online must be granted by the author in writing.