When a Minnesota woman was preparing to meet the man who received her dead husband’s face in a transplant operation, the hospital that performed the surgery – the Mayo Clinic – immediately recommended that The Associated Press be the news organization to tell their story.
In early 2016 AP national writer Sharon Cohen, video journalist Teresa Crawford and photographer Charlie Neibergall had been first with the tale of Andy Sandness and Calen “Rudy” Ross. The AP team's sensitive portrayal of two men who had each attempted suicide, with the one who lived (Sandness) ultimately receiving the face of the one who did not (Ross), had been well-regarded by Sandness and by Ross’ widow, Lilly.
In the months following, Mayo was besieged with requests from news outlets to cover the first meeting between Andy and Lilly, with one outlet calling and emailing as often as twice a month. But when Andy and Lilly began making plans to meet in fall 2017, they wanted only AP in the room.
Lilly Ross, right, feels the beard of face transplant recipient Andy Sandness during their meeting at the Mayo Clinic, Oct. 27, 2017, in Rochester, Minn. Sixteen months earlier Ross had agreed to donate the face that once belonged to her husband, Calen "Rudy" Ross, to the disfigured Sandness.
AP Photo / Charlie Neibergall
Face transplant recipient Andy Sandness talks with toddler Leonard Ross as they look out a window at the Mayo Clinic, Friday, Oct. 27, 2017, in Rochester, Minn. Leonard's mother, Lilly Ross, consented to the face transplant from her husband despite her hesitation about someday seeing Rudy's face on a stranger.
AP Photo / Charlie Neibergall
Lilly Ross, right, reacts as she talks with face transplant recipient Andy Sandness during their first meeting at the Mayo Clinic, Oct. 27, 2017, in Rochester, Minn. Ross had fretted before the meeting, fearful of the certain reminders of her husband, who took his own life. But her stress quickly melted away – without Calen’s eyes, forehead or strong cheeks, Sandness didn’t look like him, she told herself.
AP Photo / Charlie Neibergall
Face transplant recipient Andy Sandness speaks during an interview, Oct. 27, 2017, at the Mayo Clinic in Rochester, Minn. Sandness is on a daily regimen of anti-rejection medication, and he’s constantly working to retrain his nerves to operate in sync with his new face, giving himself facial massages and striving to improve his speech by running through the alphabet while driving or showering.
AP Photo / Charlie Neibergall
Lilly Ross, left, shows family photos to face transplant recipient Andy Sandness after meeting at a library at the Mayo Clinic, Friday, Oct. 27, 2017, in Rochester, Minn. The meeting was arranged by the hospital, where Sandness underwent a 56-hour surgery that was the clinic’s first such transplant.
AP Photo / Charlie Neibergall
Face transplant recipient Andy Sandness holds toddler Leonard Ross, son of face transplant donor Calen "Rudy" Ross, after they met at the Mayo Clinic, Oct. 27, 2017, in Rochester, Minn. Leonard's mother, Lilly, and Sandness say they plan to forge a stronger connection, and Sandness said he’ll contribute to a trust fund for Leonard’s education.
AP Photo / Charlie Neibergall
Andy Sandness, left, gets a hug from Dr. Samir Mardini at the Mayo Clinic, Oct. 27, 2017, in Rochester, Minn. Mardini led a 56-hour transplant surgery to give Sandness the face that once belonged to Calen "Rudy" Ross. Mardini said the two men were such a near-perfect match for the transplant that they could have been cousins.
AP Photo / Charlie Neibergall
Lilly Ross, right, holds her toddler son Leonard as she talks with face transplant recipient Andy Sandness after their first meeting at the Mayo Clinic, Oct. 27, 2017, in Rochester, Minn. Eight months pregnant at the time of the transplant surgery, Ross said one reason to go forward was that she wanted the couple’s child to one day understand what his late father did to help others.
AP Photo / Charlie Neibergall
With Cohen on vacation, St. Paul correspondent Kyle Potter joined Crawford and Neibergall to cover a meeting that began with a tearful embrace between Andy and Lilly and included Andy holding the Rosses’ toddler son. Lilly Ross said later that she had agonized over the meeting, afraid that seeing Rudy’s face on another man would stir painful memories of his suicide. Instead, she said, the meeting “made me proud” as she saw how Andy’s life had been transformed.
The video presentation, edited by Krysta Fauria, was a big hit, with 24 AP Video US downloads and widespread use by major customers such as CBS, ABC, NBC, The Washington Post and more. Teletrax found 226 uses of the video. The text story, which Potter worked closely on with News Editor Doug Glass, had 460 uses, according to NewsWhip, including The New York Times, Minneapolis Star Tribune, Chicago Tribune and St. Paul Pioneer Press. The story generated more than 31,000 social interactions on customer sites.
For their sensitive and exclusive coverage of a poignant meeting, Crawford, Neibergall and Potter win this week’s $300 Best of the States award.