PARKERSBURG - Like many photographers who rush out with their cameras in the wake of big events, Jenny Meyer was looking for a few shots no one else had.

What she found was a way to help rebuild Parkersburg.

Meyer, who owns Forever Now Photography located just north of Parkersburg, was returning from Prairie du Chien, Wis., with her husband, when her parents called to tell her there was severe weather headed toward Parkersburg. The couple arrived two hours later, right after the May 25 tornado had flattened the south side of town.

"As soon as I saw the Sinclair Grain Elevator was gone, I was just … sobbing and thinking of my friends," she said. "I couldn't get through to them on their cell phones," she said. "It took 45 minutes for us to go the 10 miles home."

That Wednesday night, she went out to the scene and shot a variety of images before heading back home to play around with them on Photoshop.

She said she "clicked around" for about 45 minutes before really noticing what she had created.

"I just looked at it and started to cry," she said. "I knew what I had to do. It all just kind of fell into place."

"It" was an 8-by-10 photo collage that featured 12 images from the aftermath of the tornado.

"I wanted it to be more of a hopeful picture and not just show destruction," she said.

Meyer had the idea to sell prints of the collage for $10 each. With McKenna Pro, a photo processing lab in Waterloo, donating all the photo paper and labor, Meyer is able to put 100 percent of her sales back into rebuilding efforts. She will use the money to restore Parkersburg City Park, where she often brings her children to play.

"I wanted to be able to constructively bring my talents back to the community," she said. "They've supported me for the last three years in business."

Meyer started by printing five copies and putting out a sign-up sheet at the Amvets of Parkersburg. Within the first hour, she had sold 45. She distributed more sign up sheets around local businesses and began distributing her prints from the Kothe Memorial Library in Parkersburg.

To date, she has sold nearly 300 to tornado victims, residents of the Cedar Valley, and even out-of-state family and friends of those affected.

"I've just been flooded with phone calls, e-mails; however long I can sell them for I will," she said.

Aaron Card, director of operations at McKenna Pro, confirmed the company's wish to continue printing free of charge on an as-needed basis. He said several of the lab's employees live in Parkersburg, and when Meyer approached management with her idea, helping out was a no-brainer.

"Normally as a lab, there's not a whole lot we can do. We don't really make a product that helps disaster victims, but with Jenny's project this was a great way to kick in and help the effort."

To order a photo collage, call Meyer at (319) 346-1588.

Contact Laura Grevas at (319) 291-1423 or laura.grevas@wcfcourier.com.