The story “Behind the smile” about Charles Lee “Cookie” Thornon, was a very powerful article. What touched me is the absence of blame.

As journalists, you presented the “what’s so”, and kept it free of the “meaning.”  It is the meaning we choose to assign to what happens that creates the space for all the mischief in the world.  Inside the meaning we choose is the blame we use to be right, and make others wrong.The insight, skill, and discipline necessary to tell a story without meaning makes it a rare occurrence.  Most often it is an accident.  Accident or not, you have provided an extraordinary service to the community.You have created a context of listening that is free of “meaning making” and blame.  In that space, people can accept what happened and find peace.  Thank you.In that view, it was a space that Cookie could not find for himself.The article deserves to be recognized for excellence in journalism.Scott KrejciSt. Louis County