Doug Clark: Aunt’s moving photo captures soldier’s last homecoming

A picture’s worth has been appraised at a thousand words. But the photograph  Lori Pence snapped of her nephew’s final homecoming speaks volumes.

The mostly black-and-white photo shows a lone casket covered by an American flag in eye-grabbing red, white and blue.

You can sense the solemnity of those standing by as the casket emerges from a jetliner’s gaping cargo hold, borne by a military honor guard.

This is an image of duty, ultimate sacrifice and, as it turned out, a terrible fatal mistake.

It is the story of Cpl. Justin Clouse.

The 22-year-old Sprague, Washington, man was one of six soldiers (five Americans and one Afghan) who were killed in Afghanistan on June 9 in what authorities have dubbed an avoidable incident.

Misunderstanding. Miscommunication.

It boiled down to this: An Air Force jet was charged with protecting Clouse and his comrades as they battled insurgents.

Instead, the bombs that were dropped blew up our own.

A recent Spokesman-Review article included this telling statement from the official report signed by Air Force Maj. Gen. Jeffrey Harrigian:

“While this complex combat situation presented a challenging set of circumstances … this tragic incident was avoidable.”

Friendly fire, it’s called. Every war has had to deal with some form of it, but that doesn’t make it any easier to bear.

Displayed among other photos at the Spokane County Interstate Fair, which ends today, Pence’s photograph earned a blue ribbon from judges plus a “people’s choice” award by a popular vote of fairgoers.

There’s no mystery about why it won, said Tim Lesser, a member of the Spokane Camera Club.

“It’s a great photograph. It’s an American moment. I don’t know how you can tell it any better.”

Pence appreciates the accolades. But the wounds are too deeply personal for that to matter very much.

“I could care less about me,” she said the other day when we met at the fair.

Pence is a small, likable woman who uses her arms and hands to gesture theatrically when she speaks.

Photography is a hobby. For the last 21 years she has worked within Spokane County’s juvenile justice system, first on the detention side and then as a secretary for Juvenile Court Probation Services.

She cares deeply for the troubled kids she meets. On occasion, Pence has taken senior photos at no charge for teens too broke to pay a professional.

On June 20, she faced her most difficult test as a photographer.

She joined family members on a quiet runway near the Spokane International Airport.

Mopping tears with tissue after tissue, Pence knew she had to find enough calm to document the “Gentle Giant’s” arrival.

That’s the loving nickname Justin was called by those who knew him. He earned it not so much for his height (Justin was 6-foot-1), but for his impressive, well-muscled physique.

“I’ll never again experience anything like it in my life,” she said.

“The whole thing was so over-the-top, both amazing and sad.”

Leaving the flag in color, she said, was a deliberate way to draw attention to the source of her nephew’s service and pride.

Pence pointed to the figure in her photograph wearing a cowboy hat. That’s Josh, Justin’s 20-year-old brother.

The hat, she added, was Justin’s.

“He’s my big brother. He’s my hero,” Josh said in a brief phone interview. “He was one of the best people you’d ever meet.

“I just wish it was different, how we welcomed him home.”

Friday would have been Justin’s 23rd birthday.

“I don’t know what to say. It just breaks my heart,” said Justin’s father, Rob. “I love the photo. I love my sister. Today is his birthday. It’s just a bad day.”

Photography is a mysterious thing when it’s done right. It’s a combination of science and art and having an eye for the truth.

Pence’s photograph tells the truth.

“I have never taken better photos in my life,” she said. “I had to. It’s what I had to do.

“I just tried to capture that moment, hoping it would be a beautiful tribute for Justin and for my family.”