Better loving through chemistry: Old letters capture epic China-to-Delaware immigration story

In this three part project, the story of the Yin family is told. Starting in China during wartime, the story goes to Wisconsin where the parents met and fell in love. At the center of the story is a story of family, love and chemistry giant DuPont.

The complex history of Alexander Twilight

As the nation’s first African American to earn a bachelor’s degree, Twilight is lauded today as an African American scholar, preacher and educator but for much of his life he was marked as white on census records. In this story for USA Today, that complex history is examined as it relates to current events.

Black Women and Health Care

Black women across the country have had bad experiences at the doctor’s office that have led to awful health outcomes. In this 3-part series I looked at some of these health disparities for Black women in Delaware, seven of them tell their stories and health experts offer advice on how to advocate for oneself at the doctor’s office. For Delaware Online/The News Journal

When a rape stole her sense of control, she fought back by eating fire

After Val Ringwell was sexually assaulted, she was so scared she barely left the house. She didn’t want to see anyone and had trouble even being a coffee shop. Then a friend of hers told her about fire eating. Although she was afraid of fire, she decided that it would be how she got some of her free back. In this feature we look at her journey. For The Sheboygan Press/USA Today Network-Wisconsin; Winner of the Wisconsin Newspaper Association’s first place in the feature (profile) award

Brain drain at the EPA

In 2017, under the Trump administration there was a huge deluge of people leaving the EPA. Unlike past years, however, many of the top officials were not being replaced. This left the government office with a massive brain drain. This story takes a look at that time and what this meant for the organization. For ProPublica/The New York Times

Flag burning in Middletown hints at tensions

2020 has seen a rise in tensions due to issues of race and identity. In this story, a church in Middletown gets targeted multiple times for being pro-LGTBQ+. For Delaware Online/The News Journal

Delaware Women of the Century

As part of the 100th anniversary of the women’s suffrage movement, the USA TODAY Network is recognizing women from around the country as part of its Women of the Century project. This project reveals the 10 Women of the Century for Delaware.

As COVID-19 sweeps Delaware, face mask debate rages on

To wear or to not wear a mask. That is the question that has swept across the state as COVID-19 numbers continued to go up in the summer of 2020. In this collaborative piece, I got to speak to some folks about why they choose to wear a mask or not.

Delaware voices of a movement: ‘George Floyd was the breaking point’

Current and former Wilmington residents explain how the death of George Floyd was the latest final straw in a long battle for racial equality and why this death affected so many of them. This collaborative piece was done after protests in Wilmington left piles of damage downtown one weekend.

Three suicides, two fires: How Temple’s Episcopal hospital lost control during COVID

Pennsylvania’s health department found an array of policy failures, staffing issues and shoddy facilities at Episcopal that contributed to a series of fires and suicides over 10 months. In this story with Aubrey Whelan, we dive into those events. For Philadelphia Inquirer

Delaware Nonprofit Update during COVID

Throughout the COVID-19 pandemic, nonprofits have struggled financially due to lack of aid. This piece looks at some of these nonprofits and their issues. For Delaware Online/The News Journal

Her son died after opioid addiction. Now she aims to help others.

Elizabeth Rich’s son Andrew was a writer, Boy Scout, traveler and also struggled with drugs and mental illness. In the end, he died with a needle in his arm. Elizabeth is now using her son’s story to help others get their records clean and get their lives back after going to jail. For The Sheboygan Press/USA Today Network-Wisconsin

Generational dive among Black voters regarding Biden

In this story, reporter Jeanne Kuang and I speak to Black voters as Delaware prepares for the 2020 election. The interviews revealed a divide among the old and young when it came to Biden. For Delaware Online/The News Journal

Accusations of racism and sexism at Del. museum

With racial tensions on the rise in 2020, a group of former employees accuse a local museum of racism and sexism. The museum has since apologized for past actions and is working on making the staff and board more diverse. For Delaware Online/The News Journal

The life of ‘Sign Lady’ Lorraine Twardowski

There are some people who, just by being themselves, make huge impacts on those around them. That is what Lorraine Twardowski and her signs did before she died. This feature looks at how the mother of one touched so many lives with her hobby, all the while dealing with a cancer diagnoses and infertility. For Delaware Online/The News Journal

Delaware grapples with the fall of historical monuments

Symbols and monuments like Cesar Rodney and the Confederate flag are controversial in today’s ongoing conversations about racism and the role it has played in America and Delaware. But why? In this deep dive on the symbols, I ask people and experts this question.

A daughter details losing her dad to COVID-19

The COVID-19 pandemic has made death an even harder ordeal as many families are not able to be there for their loved ones for fear of continued exposure. In this feature, I speak to one woman who lost her father less than a week after seeing him perfectly healthy. In this emotional story, we get an inside look into what it is like to lose a parent during a pandemic and not even really get a chance to say goodbye.

Instead of stigma, these babies exposed to drugs found love

Erin Meyer and Sandra Medinilla are both doctors in Delaware who have four beautiful babies who just happen to be a little different. In a state heavily impacted by addiction, these doctors saw firsthand the reach of substance use disorder and the children it was affecting. They wanted to show parents that these children weren’t damaged, but in fact, beautiful and in need of loving homes. Now, the only thing these three children seem to be struggling with is catching the attention of one of their moms at the breakfast island and laughing through tummy tickles.