Beauty for Ashes

On April 19, 1995, the United States of America was changed forever when Timothy McVeigh and Terry Nichols bombed the Alfred P. Murrah Building in downtown Oklahoma City. This attack is commonly known as "The Oklahoma City Bombing." 168 people were killed including 19 children. Beauty for Ashes is a feature film that explores the personal journeys of parents, firefighters and medical workers whose lives were sewn together as they battled grief and Post Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD) and as they unexpectedly discovered the power that was within them to turn their tragedies into triumphs. THE STORIES Aren Almon Kok - Aren Almon Kok's daughter, Baylee, was in the daycare on the second floor of the Alfred P. Murrah Building and was one of 19 children who were murdered that day. A photo of Captain Chris Fields holding Baylee amidst the rubble became the most iconic photo of the tragedy, but its widespread dissemination also traumatized Aren. Inspired by the high number of glass-related injuries among the bombing victims, Aren later became the spokesperson for The Protecting People First Foundation and led an effort to pass congressional bill number HR 4159, or "Baylee's Law" to ensure a standard of glass protection in public buildings. Captain Chris Fields - As the fires raged, rescue services and bystanders rushed to pull victims out of the twisted wreckage. Sifting through the rubble, Police Officer John Avera found a small half-buried body. Shouting that he has a critical infant, Officer Avera thrust the one year-old Baylee Almon into the arms of nearby Oklahoma City Firefighter, Captain Chris Fields. As Chris checked Baylee for signs of life, two amateur photographers both raised their cameras. Lester LaRue and Charles Porter standing just three feet apart, yet unaware of each other, snapped the image that came to symbolize the victims of the Oklahoma City Bombing (famouspictures.org). While the public lauded Chris as a hero, he privately fought bouts of depression and Post Traumatic Stress Disorder while struggling with guilt for "not being able to save more people." Daina Bradley - Daina Bradley was in the Social Security Office with her mother, sister, daughter and son. While filling out paperwork, Daina people-watched through the office's large glass window. She noticed a man illegally park a Ryder moving truck next to the Murrah Building. Unbeknownst to Daina at the time, the man was Timothy McVeigh, and he had lit a fuse to ignite the devastating bomb before he calmly strolled across the street. The bomb killed each of Daina's family members except for her sister who suffered brain damage and the loss of an ear. Trapped in the rubble and facing the threat of hypothermia as cold water from busted pipes surrounded her, Daina could only be rescued from the bombing rubble by having her right leg amputated on the scene. Daina would later bravely serve as a key witness during the McVeigh trial revealing what she saw through the window on that fateful day. Dr. Raymund King - Dr. Raymund King was a Chief Resident Surgeon at the Oklahoma University Health Sciences Center formerly known as the Oklahoma Memorial Hospital. Raymund treated victims of the Oklahoma City Bombing in 1995. The hospital was only six blocks away from ground zero, and it issued a code black calling for all medical staff to receive patients in the Emergency Room. Raymund personally witnessed the deaths of 17 victims on that tragic day and subsequently suffered from repressed memories.