June 2, 2020

Photos of the Month — May 2020

Here's a look at the best images our photojournalists captured while covering the COVID-19 pandemic and other stories in May 2020.

Southeast Missourian photography staff

Shafiq Malik, left, bumps elbows with Annis ur Rehman after celebrating Eid al-Fitr, a day of celebration marking the end of Ramadan, on Sunday, May 24, 2020, in Cape Girardeau. Traditionally, the celebration would conclude with community members exchanging hugs and partaking in a potluck brunch, but the local Muslim community was unable to do so this year due to the pandemic.

David and Susie Hildebrand of Cape Girardeau wave while in a parade for veterans with their grandsons, from left, Jaxson Boyer, 5; Colton Boyer, 7; and Frankie Boyer, 10, on Thursday, May 14, 2020, outside the Missouri Veterans Home in Cape Girardeau. Susie said her father, Sam McGuffee, is at the facility.

Christy Moore and Craig Thomas, both of Cape Girardeau, pose for a portrait Thursday, May 14, 2020, in Cape Girardeau next to artwork they created for the Islamic Center of Cape Girardeau.

On their 70th wedding anniversary, Kenneth and Martha Bender wave during a parade held in their honor Friday, May 15, 2020, in the driveway of their Cape Girardeau home. Neighbor Joe McLemore had the idea for the parade and said, on the phone before the event, the Benders were to be presented with proclamations from the state and city before the procession.

Jackson High School class of 2020 member Allie Fuller adds a handprint to a wall featuring those of other classmates Tuesday, May 19, 2020, at Jackson High School. Merideth Pobst, director of communications for the Jackson R-2 School District, said the activity is a Jackson High School tradition done each year with the graduating class.

Booch siblings of Cape Girardeau, from left, Henri, 7, Emma, 9, and Matilda, 5, play hockey with their mother, Maren Booch (not pictured), on Wednesday, May 20, 2020, at a parking lot near Cape Splash Family Aquatic Center in Cape Girardeau. Maren said hockey in the parking lot has become a regular activity for the family during the COVID-19 pandemic. "We were looking for a spot and as long nobody parks his car here, that's a perfect spot so we do it almost every afternoon. Sometimes twice a day. When my husband's home, he has to come with us too after dinner," Maren said. "As long as it's not raining, we're here."

Tattoo artist Andy Estes of Cape Girardeau and Landry Francis of Marble Hill, Missouri, wear face masks and are reflected in a mirror during a tattoo session Thursday, May 21, 2020, at Flesh Hound Tattoo Studio in Cape Girardeau. Estes said everyone in the business, which reopened May 5, has to wear a mask for the time being. One sign on the door of business says a face mask is required. Another "coronavirus check" sign asks readers if they have various symptoms and instructs them accordingly if the symptoms are present.

Jackson High School graduates (from left) Amber Marie Lowes, Erin Taylor Huff, Jacob Charles Farrar, Caleb Scott Anderson and Logan Wayne McClanahan have pictures made following an in-person military graduation ceremony and parade Friday, May 22, 2020, at Jackson High School. Reasoning for the military graduation included scheduling conflicts with the graduates' basic training and the full-class graduation which has been rescheduled for a later date due to the COVID-19 pandemic. Following the ceremony, a parade was held outside the school in the graduates' honor.

Ann Mell of Farmington, Missouri, shops at a sale between Jackson and Gordonville during the 100-Mile Yard Sale on Saturday, May 23, 2020, along Highway 25. The sale takes place along Highway 25 from Jackson to Kennett, Missouri, and runs through Memorial Day.

Jace Brooks, 4, of Bloomfield, Missouri, (being held by his mother April Bond of Bloomfield) reacts to his grandmother Margie Robinson of Advance, Missouri, holding up a dinosaur poster at a sale in Delta during the 100-Mile Yard Sale on Saturday, May 23, 2020, along Highway 25. The event takes place along Highway 25 from Jackson to Kennett, Missouri, and runs through Memorial Day.

Local imam Dr. Tahsin Khalid, center, leads a group of more than 30 men in prayer during Eid al-Fitr, a day of celebration marking the end of Ramadan, on Sunday, May 24, 2020, in Cape Girardeau. To abide by local and state recommendations for social distancing, the local Muslim community took the temperatures of all who entered the building, stationed hand sanitizer at all entrances, marked 6-foot distances between each prayer rug and provided masks to those who attended.

Vehicles make their way around the campus of Notre Dame Regional High School during a "Friday night lights" senior drive-through event Friday, May 1, 2020, in Cape Girardeau. Notre Dame principal Tim Garner said teachers and coaches were around the campus with signs to tell seniors "how much they're missed" and "thanking them for everything this year." Garner said seniors were able to pick up their caps, gowns, honor stoles and medals at the event.

Tempest Southall of Cape Girardeau shops during a drive-through-only version of the Cape Riverfront Market on Saturday, May 2, 2020, at Century Casino Cape Girardeau.

Thomas Houston carries a flag while working with fellow crew members from Adult and Teen Challenge Mid-America to assemble the Avenue of Flags for Memorial Day on Monday, May 25, 2020, at Cape Girardeau County Park North in Cape Girardeau.

Local musician Rodney Lancaster plays taps on his front porch at during Memorial Day on Monday afternoon, May 25, 2020. The musician's playing of taps at 3 p.m. local time was part of "Taps Across America" -- a nationwide Memorial Day remembrance of the fallen amid traditional event cancellations due to the coronavirus outbreak. Lancaster has performed with such names as Ella Fitzgerald, the Illinois Jacquet Orchestra, Maynard Ferguson, the Lionel Hampton Orchestra and the Tommy Dorsey Orchestra.

Tanner Mendoza, 17, of Cape Girardeau goes fishing Wednesday, May 27, 2020, at Capaha Park in Cape Girardeau. Mendoza said he tries to go fishing every day. "It's one of my favorite hobbies, that and football," Mendoza said. He said fishing is a stress reliever for him and something he's been doing more during the COVID-19 pandemic.

Sallie Phillips of St. Louis, Missouri, (front of frame, in pink) cheers near family during a parade for Jackson High School seniors Friday, May 29, 2020, at Jackson City Park. Phillips said she is the aunt of Jackson senior Cami Brazel. Event organizer Mendi McDowell of Jackson, mother of Jackson senior Autumn Gragg, said the event materialized after the number of people was limited at graduation. "We just wanted the safest way that we would be able to celebrate our seniors," McDowell said. She said the parade route was made long so people would have space to feel conformable. She said the parade started at the high school and went though the park before turning around and heading back to the school.

A discarded face mask sits on the ground Saturday, May 30, 2020, near the railroad tracks in downtown Cape Girardeau.

Danny Warren of Scott City, Missouri, sits along the Mississippi River on Saturday, May 30, 2020, in downtown Cape Girardeau.

Dustin Chaney of Sikeston, Missouri, (left) and Heath Swoboda of Cape Girardeau observe a Black Lives Matter message on the river wall Saturday, May 30, 2020, along the Mississippi River in downtown Cape Girardeau. Numerous demonstrations have taken place around the country in recent days following the death of George Floyd, a black man who died in the custody of police in Minneapolis. Floyd's name was one of many featured on the message.

Dustin Chaney of Sikeston, Missouri, (left) and Heath Swoboda of Cape Girardeau observe a Black Live Matter message on the river wall Saturday, May 30, 2020, along the Mississippi River in downtown Cape Girardeau. Numerous demonstrations have taken place around the country in recent days following the death of George Floyd, a black man who died in the custody of police in Minneapolis. Floyd's name was one of many featured on the message. 

Demonstrators perform a sit-in protest at the intersection of Broadway and North West End Boulevard on Sunday, May 31, 2020, in Cape Girardeau.

Cape Girardeau K-9 officer Johnny Spencer, left, and Chief Wes Blair, second from right, redirect traffic from the intersection of Broadway and North Pacific streets as demonstrators march eastbound on Sunday, May 31, 2020, in Cape Girardeau to protest the death of George Floyd.

Cape Girardeau resident Damontae Maxwell, 24, poses for a portrait with a sign bearing hundreds of signatures from those in support of the Black Lives Matter movement after a march Sunday, May 31, 2020, in Cape Girardeau.

Aura Simpson blows bubbles for her daughters Bailey, 2, and Alyssa, 4, on Monday, May 4, 2020, as their father Trey Simpson (not pictured) watches the girls play near Themis Street in Cape Girardeau.

Dr. Sean Byrd pets Coco, an eight-week-old Goldendoodle, as the puppy eats a treat out of Callie Ashley's hand after a veterinary visit Monday, May 4, 2020, in Cape Girardeau.

Robin Koetting, program manager for United Way of Southeast Missouri's Read to Succeed early literacy program, and her daughters Audrey Koetting, 13, (in passenger seat) and Zoe Koetting, 18, (holding sign) drive past Franklin Elementary School during UWSEMO's #GiveUnitedCarParade on Tuesday, May 5, 2020, in Cape Girardeau. Elizabeth Shelton, executive director of UWSEMO, said Tuesday was "'Giving Tuesday Now' which is being celebrated globally to help the non-profits that are helping people impacted by COVID-19." She said Tuesday was chosen for the parade "to give thanks to essential works who have stayed on the job and to volunteers who have also risked their own health to help others." Shelton said those who are able can give financially to the organization's COVID-19 fund. She said the organization supports 30 other non-profits that are helping.

Tipton family members, from left, mother Ashley, 7-year-old Sydney, 10-year-old Madison and father Jeff, all of Jackson, watch as a B-2 stealth bomber flies over Cape Girardeau on Friday, May 8, 2020, as seen from a parking structure at Southeast Hospital. The Friday flyover, conducted by Missouri Air National Guard's 131st Bomb Wing, was also scheduled to occur in five other Missouri communities to "honor medical and healthcare professionals, essential employees and volunteers in the fight against COVID-19," according to a release from the Missouri National Guard.

On the day her high school graduation was supposed to be held, Oak Ridge High School senior Alexis Lukefahr receives flowers from her father Curtis Lukefahr as her brother Lane Lukefahr drives her in a parade for the school's seniors Friday, May 8, 2020, in Oak Ridge. The senior parade made its way from Cape County Cowboy Church near Interstate 55 and through the community to Oak Ridge High School. Adrian Eftink, superintendent of the Oak Ridge R-VI School District, said a group of parents who wanted to do something for the seniors approached the school district about the parade. "It just makes you proud of the community," Eftink said. "Being an administrator and a member of the staff here, to see the community support our students, it just gives you a good warm feeling [and] pride in the Oak Ridge community."

Collin Stephens of Cape Girardeau is hit by spray string from a parade participant during his surprise-birthday parade Saturday, May 9, 2020, at Shawnee Park in Cape Girardeau. Collin marks his 10th birthday Sunday and his mother, Michaela Stephens, said she had the idea to throw him the surprise-birthday parade. "With the social distancing and everything and not being able to have a party, I figured that a parade would be pretty neat," Michaela said on the phone before the parade. "It's a surprise. He has no idea. ... He thinks that we're going to throw the football around in the soccer field."

Cape Girardeau County Sheriff Ruth Ann Dickerson and Nicolette Brennan, public information manager for the City of Cape Girardeau (with camera), film a virtual tour of the new Cape Girardeau County Courthouse on Wednesday, May 13, 2020, in Jackson.

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Here's a look at the best images our photojournalists captured while covering the COVID-19 pandemic and other stories in May 2020.

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