Catching Raindrops

For many people, rain is something to escape. For Bill W. Dodge, it was one of the reasons he chose to call Oregon home.

When Bill arrived from Los Angeles on a rainy day, a real estate broker hurried to reassure him that "it doesn't always rain like this." Bill laughed and replied, "Be careful what you say about the rain because it's what I love." Rainy days kept him happily indoors at his easel, painting, while Southern California's endless sunshine always tempted him outside to work in the garden.

Catching Raindrops captures that joyful spirit. Two children in bright yellow raincoats stand beneath the Astoria-Megler Bridge, faces turned skyward as they delight in a Pacific Northwest downpour. Rather than hiding from the weather, they celebrate it.

Bill later joked that after decades in Oregon he had only one complaint:

"It just doesn't rain enough!" — Bill W. Dodge