With no visitors or events in the Florida Keys or Key West from March through June, local photographers found themselves, like thousands of others, with time on their hands — and cameras in them.
Roberta DePiero is one such photographer, who saw her fellow shooters while riding her bike around town, capturing signs of the coronavirus and its incalculable medical, social and financial impacts.
The photographers’ presence — and the images they’ve been capturing of the “COVID Spring” — gave DePiero an idea: A commemorative photo book containing hundreds of images by 25 locals with long lenses.
Proceeds from book sales will benefit Sister Season Fund’s COVID-19 relief efforts on behalf of workers in tourism-related industries including entertainment, hospitality, lodging, and some retail and guest services.
DePiero contacted her friend, fellow photographer and local publicist Carol Tedesco, and the two applied for and received a $1,000 grant from the Key West chapter of Awesome Foundation to help with production and printing costs. Additional donations from Bill and Linda Klipp, Harpoon Harry’s, Simone Lasswell and Michael Blades and Kathy Kilroy raised the production funds to $2,500, nearly meeting the project’s $3,000 goal, Tedesco said.
“We calculate that with $3,000 we can print approximately 200 8.5 x 11, high-quality, soft-cover books,” DePiero said. “If we sell them for $49 each, we’ll raise nearly $10,000 for Sister Season Fund’s crucial outreach during COVID-19.”
“Leveraging the Awesome Foundation’s $1,000 grant to benefit the community at large is exactly the kind of awesome idea our trustees love to support and fund,” said Awesome Foundation Key West ‘Dean’ Michael Shields. “At this time of critical community need we welcome and invite others with such awesome ideas to apply.”
Photographers contributing to the still-to-be-titled book are: Peter Arnow, Susan Bailey, Michael Blades, Lynne Bentley-Kemp, Joe and Ozlem Berg, Larry Blackburn, Kyle Campbell, Jeffrey Cardenas, Alyson Crean, Roberta DePiero, Ralph DePalma, Heather Dow, Todd Feit, Tony Gregory, Connie Groth, Jay Hall, Mark Hedden, Martha Hubbard, Bill Klipp, Linda Klipp, Corey Malcom, Rob O’Neal, Steve Panariello, Carol Tedesco and Sharon Wells.
With a foreword written by local arts advocate Rosi Ware, DePiero and Tedesco hope to have the book available some time in August. Anyone wishing to contribute to the printing cost and/or place advance orders may contact Roberta DePiero at robertadepiero@gmail.com. More information about the Awesome Foundation Key West Chapter is at awesomefoundationkeywest.org or from Shields at 305-394-3804.
Duval Street in front of the iconic Sloppy Joe’s bar is devoid of traffic midday, April 15, 2020. 
A page in the story: Due to Covid-19, the nightly Sunset Celebration at Mallory Square was paused from March 16 through June 5, during which time some of the artists created an uplifting art installation project around Key West. ROBERTA DePIERO/Contributed 
Roberta DePiero, center, and Carol Tedesco, right, receive a $1,000 check from Awesome Foundation Key West Chapter trustees Marjorie Townsend with children Rémi, 3 months, and Zoë, 7, Amy Culver, David Johnson, Mark Straiton, Chase Hurst, foundation ‘dean’ Michael Shields and Lynne Bentley-Kemp. CONTRIBUTED 
