The videos of 2017 told many stories. Goats ate bouquets of flowers, wildfires displaced communities, teenagers built confidence through boxing and prison inmates found empathy caring for shelter animals. Through audio, video, photos and text, the Columbian produced more 100 videos that showcase Clark County and the events that make it unique.

As a visual storyteller, I am on a mission to produce work that provides viewers and story subjects with growth, challenges their opinions or illustrates commonality in the world. I believe the power to give a voice to the unheard and to create media that stands for something is the most meaningful form of journalism — and is a service to humanity. Here are three of my favorite videos from 2017 that accomplished those goals.

– Ariane Kunze, video producer

Several inmates at Larch Corrections Center in Yacolt, Washington, were given the opportunity to care for and train shelter dogs from the Humane Society for Southwest Washington. Once the dogs graduated from the program, they were adopted into families. Full story: http://bit.ly/2iBo3nN

Akhil Jhaveri, 52, was diagnosed with ALS, or Lou Gehrig’s disease, in July 2011, and has since lost the ability to move his limbs, speak and has difficulty breathing. For most people, the disease is fatal within two to four years of the diagnosis. In November 2015, The Columbian published “A Strong Man,” a three-day series of stories, photos and videos about the Jhaveri family as they navigate life with ALS. This is an update on Akhil and his family. Full story: http://bit.ly/2pXYRPM

Heidi Bucklin was 18 when she died by suicide May 23, 2011. She loved to laugh, competing in sports at Columbia River High School in Vancouver, and being with her friends. She dreamt of working as a physical therapist with disabled children, and would have gone to Central Washington University the fall after she died. Her death shocked classmates and friends, who saw their bubbly friend and not the mental health challenges that lied beneath her smiling surface. Full story on teen suicide: http://bit.ly/2uVMReH