At The Cavalier Daily’s spring cocktail party on April 24, 1998, Daniel Cooper, a second-year College student and Cavalier Daily photo editor, was honored as the first winner of the Kristian M. Pierson Memorial Scholarship, which will be awarded annually for at least 10 years to honor Kris, who died Feb. 24, 1997.

The $1,000 scholarship, funded by Kris’ parents, Capt. Mike and Elaine Pierson, will be awarded to aspiring photographers to help them attend workshops, take unpaid internships or develop their portfolios.

Cooper said he will use the scholarship to complete a summer-long project of taking pictures of toll-takers throughout the state of Pennsylvania. He said he hoped the lessons he learns here can be applied to taking more "artistic" photos for The Cavalier Daily and beyond.

Cooper’s project "is offbeat enough that I think Kris would have gotten into it," Capt. Pierson said with a laugh. "He loved shooting pictures of people."

Kris served The Cavalier Daily for four years, all in the photography department, until his graduation in 1994. The scholarship in his name is not only designed to support two things that Kris loved, The Cavalier Daily and photography, but also to help those that he touched directly and indirectly to honor his memory.

In short, Kris inspired people. Talking to friends and family, those who worked closely with him or those who just knew him peripherally all say the same thing: Kris was unique and will never be forgotten.

His photos capture life.

His art revolves around people, for that was the subject that he loved most and what ultimately drew him to photojournalism.

"He wasn’t into wildlife or landscapes. He loved people. He loved to capture them on film," Capt. Pierson said.

Those who knew him at The Cavalier Daily can recall various shots, but one, almost without exception, is cited by all: an outstretched University student diving to catch a Frisbee on the Lawn. The "shadow shot" is just one of many photos that Kris took that touched people.

A glance at photos pinned on the wall near the CD photo department or in the darkroom or on the wall behind the editor-in-chief’s desk is a look at who Kris was at the University. It is a glimpse at his passion, four years after he last snapped a shot for the pages of The Cavalier Daily.

Walking through his parents’ home, perusing one of a dozen albums, or rummaging through boxes of unfiled photos reveals a tremendous volume of work, Capt. Pierson said.

Capt. Pierson added that he could not remember a time when Kris wasn’t shooting for somebody. "Most of his shooting was for papers. He did that nearly full time. When he wasn’t at school, he found work to do.

"Every place he ever interned always said they wished they had a position for him when he left," Capt. Pierson said. "As an intern for the Daily Press, his photo was picked to be the full-page cover of the newcomers issue—probably the most-viewed paper of the year."

But that’s not why he took photos, Capt. Pierson said. "The awards weren’t big with him at all. He didn’t even tell us about all of them. He did it because he loved it."

There was one thing that Kris was proud of.

"He would be mad at me if I didn’t mention it," Capt. Pierson said. Kris was selected to participate in Barnstorm, a workshop run by 1969 Pulitzer Prize-winning photographer Eddie Adams. Adams was made famous by his shot taken during the Vietnam war of a police officer shooting a Viet Cong suspect in the head. Kris was selected as one of 40 photographers out of more than 800 that applied for the workshop.

"There’s a photo on my wall of Kris and Eddie labeled ‘Me and Eddie’ with Kris’ inscription ‘Two famous photographers hang out.’

"He came out of that with exemplary comments about his portfolio. That workshop meant more to him than any award."

Those who knew him at The Cavalier Daily also remembered his talents.

"Kris was a great photographer," former CD editor-in-chief Steve Power said. "He was the most talented in my time there."

Power recalled many nights of listening to Pierson vehemently argue for better cameras and new equipment for the photography department.

He said the two shared the goal of seeing The Cavalier Daily win five marks of distinction from the Associated Collegiate Press. But the paper won four marks, lacking one: visual.

"Kris would argue about why the photo department needed better equipment," Power said. "And you know what? He was so right. He recognized that we needed to have a higher visual standard more acutely than any of us did."

Kris’ efforts ultimately led to the elimination of the use of process cameras for CD production in lieu of negative and flatbed scanning, which drastically improved photo quality. In the most recent ACP awards, The Cavalier Daily did receive five marks of distinction, a testament to Kris’ vision.

Cavalier Daily Alumni Association President Steve Hanlin, a former photo editor and business manager, said that Kris’ spearheading of the move to digital imaging at The Cavalier Daily was one of the most significant events in the last five years.

Matt Lane, former operations manager and co-photo editor with Kris, agreed.

"The newspaper got more out of him than he got out of the newspaper," Lane said. "He was never trying to just fill space; he was trying to improve the page."

Kris used the weather pic, the photo on the front of The Cavalier Daily that often is the main visual element of the page, "to show his eye for picking photos," Lane said. "He turned the weather pic into something you’d be vying to shoot ... a chance to capture something unique about the University.

"It wasn’t just that he took photos," he added. "He really had to build something. There had to be something in that image. ... He wasn’t egotistical, but he looked at the newspaper as a graphical element and strived to improve it. That influence was probably his biggest contribution to the newspaper. It wasn’t just that the photo was his, the whole newspaper was his."

Lane said that even after Pierson had left the paper he would send clips of what he was doing every few months. Even from afar, Pierson was still trying to teach lessons and improve the paper, he said. But Kris’ contributions and influence stretched far beyond the darkroom.

"Kris was unique," friends chime in almost unanimously.

"Kris was a unique personality. He was very strong willed. He lived life to the fullest, but he never, never forgot to have a good time," Capt. Pierson said. Kris was a ski instructor in both Virginia and Colorado at different points and he thought about teaching rollerblading as well, he said.

Capt. Pierson recalls friends describing Kris as just as likely to fight for what he thought was right as he was to "run bare-assed down the Lawn."

"That was Kris," he said.

Even Kris’ death is marked by poetry.

"He died during the Halle-Bopp comet," Capt. Pierson said and then proceeded to quote a line written by William Shakespeare: "When beggars die, there are no comets seen. But the heavens themselves blaze forth the death of princes."

Power thought of another author—George Bernard Shaw—when recalling Kris.

"He was unreasonable in the best sense of the word." Power said. "Kris wouldn’t tolerate mediocrity and he wouldn’t hear of cutting corners. ... It was inspiring to have someone like that around."

Capt. Pierson said he did not think Kris ever realized how much he truly did reach people.

"He didn’t realize his impact on people," he said. "He didn’t realize his impact on me.

"We’re two parents who have unbridled pride in our son. He was an extremely intelligent and extremely creative young man. He was amazing.