FEATURE Clasen’s work was recently recognized by the Society of Professional Journalists’ “Top of the Rockies” awards. One of the awardwinning photos was for his article Alamosa’s Sanctioned Camp Takes Care of Its People, where Christi Buchanan and Ricky Plunkett share a tender moment. The sanctioned camp in Alamosa played a significant role in helping Buchanan and Plunkett get off the street. Clasen won a Top of the Rockies award for a photo he took in 2023 of Devine Carter and her husband Cornelius Jenkins in their RV. In the photo, Carter sits on the edge of their bed with Jenkins reclining beside her. “This RV … was the luckiest thing for us, or maybe, the best blessing,” Jenkins said. June 2025 DENVER VOICE 7
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