Author: John Beck

Capt. Steve Baxman has been saving lives and fighting fires on the Russian River for the past 45 years. (JOHN BURGESS / The Press Democrat)

Monte Rio Fire Captain Steve Baxman Has Seen It All

Steve Baxman makes friends the hard way. “I still have people stop me on the street and thank me for something I’ve done,” he says. As a member of the Monte Rio volunteer fire department for the past 45 years, Baxman has rescued so many people he can’t remember them all. “But I’ll say, ‘Give me […]
Headstones uncovered over time by volunteers await determination of their proper place at the Santa Rosa Rural Cemetery. (Photo by John Beck)

Piecing Together the History of Santa Rosa Rural Cemetery

A few hours past dawn in the Santa Rosa Rural Cemetery, John Dennison stood beneath a cluster of oak trees with the rest of the Tombstone Trio — fellow retirees Scott Minnis and Henry Katz — as they surveyed the site of their latest graveyard excavation. “You can hardly describe what it feels like when […]
Photo by Kent Porter

Our Hero of the Valley Fire

Profile on Press Democrat Photographer Kent Porter When the New York Times used the word “heroic” to describe The Press Democrat’s coverage of the Valley fire in Lake County, it was talking in large part about photographer Kent Porter. The Santa Rosa newspaper’s master of disaster photography for 28 years, Porter has covered floods, mudslides, […]
Behold the naked lady flower, taking root in the unlikeliest of places and at the unlikeliest of times. (photos by Kent Porter)

Leggy Beauties of Late Summer

Behold the naked lady flower, taking root in the unlikeliest of places and at the unlikeliest of times.

Beer Country: Know the Lingo

Feeling left out, or worse, ostracized, when those around you are talking beer smack? Here's the lingo that will earn you some beer street cred.