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Abigail Semler, a member Sigma Sigma Sigma sorority, competes in a watermelon eating contest during Relay for Life, held in the Gordon Field House on the Rochester Institute of Technology campus, on April 9, 2017, in Henrietta, N.Y. Relay for life is a 12 hour fundraising event held by the Colleges Against Cancer club to raise money for the American Cancer Society.

The “sneaker index” created by former senator Bernie Fowler began in 1988 as a means to raise awareness of the pollution in the Patuxent River and Chesapeake Bay. Every year on the second Sunday of June, Fowler wades into the Patuxent until he can no longer see his white sneakers. On June 10, Fowler was able to see his sneakers through 36 inches of water, 5.5 inches less than last year. However, after the measurement Fowler expressed his delight in finding patches of bay grasses during the wade-in—a clear sign of the bay’s recovery.

Santa Claus adjusts his mask before submerging into the pool for an underwater photos with Santa experience, on Nov. 25, 2018, on Kent Island, Md.

Danielle Holiday walks in between the Kunta Kinte-Alex Haley Memorial and Ego Alley in Annapolis, Md., July 30, 2018. Debris from the Susquehanna River, a tributary of the Chesapeake Bay, have entered the bay after heavy rains over the last week caused Exelon to open gates at the Conowingo Dam. The record rainfall produced heavy flows at the dam at rates over 300,000 cubic feet per second, forcing debris down into the bay. Boaters are urged to use caution and wear life vests, and staying out of the water in the Upper Bay is suggested until the debris clears.

Ronni Leigh Goeman of the Onondaga Nation, poses for a portrait with her tools to create a semi-traditional and traditional basket of her people, in her home, on Oct. 30, 2016, in Onondaga, N.Y. Her baskets are a take on traditional utilitarian baskets, and have been featured in exhibits as prestigious as the Smithsonian.


The women's fancy dance is a newer addition to the powwow competition. Successful dancers appear to be floating, calling back to the legend that the dance is meant to mimic a butterfly emerging from a cocoon.


Park goers cool off at the pool in The Yards park, on July 5, 2018, in Washington D.C.