In the spring of 2010, then-Ohio University student Maddie McGarvey noticed more and more grandparents were raising their grandchildren in southeast Ohio – a symptom of the opioid epidemic.
As a sophomore photojournalism student, she wanted to document one family’s experience. A social worker connected her to the Castos.
When McGarvey first stepped foot in their home, Paige Casto was just three years old. She kept photographing the family through this year, when Paige turned 18.
In her photo project “Legacy of Daughters,” McGarvey traces the life of Paige Casto and her family through 15 years of birthdays, weddings, fights and reconciliations.
McGarvey and Casto both sat down with The Ohio Newsroom to talk about the project and the friendship that formed from it.
This interview has been lightly edited for brevity and clarity.
On the intent of the project
MCGARVEY: “I was 19 years old, just one year older than Paige is now when I started working on this project. The entire family welcomed me with open arms. Paige was three years old when I first entered her life. I don't think she remembers a time when I wasn't in her life.”
“My initial motivation was to document grandparents raising their grandchildren. But I just formed this really special bond with the family and it became much more than that. It became just sort of witnessing their life, Paige’s life, just kind of being there. I don't have children of my own yet, but I think watching these kids grow up is like the closest thing to it. I'm thankful that photography has introduced me to people like Paige.”
On witnessing difficult moments
CASTO: “When I was a lot younger, it was embarrassing because you never want your family fighting in front of other people. Like we'll be screaming at each other and Maddie's just in the background taking pictures.”
“But as I've gotten older, it was definitely a good thing. I'm so glad she came out and got to be able to spend as much time as she has with my family. She's seen the good and she's seen the bad, which helped a lot because now me and Maddie are very close. She's like an older sister to me. Looking at all the old pictures, it helps me and my past trauma. Cause I'll be like, ‘Oh, I remember that day,’ and then I kind of put it behind me.”
MCGARVEY: “Like Paige said, I was there for the good, bad, ugly and everything in between. And I think my role as a photographer, photojournalist, documentarian, is not necessarily just to gloss over the bad stuff because I think it's just real life. It's a real family and their struggles and their trauma. I'm glad to hear that Paige can kind of look back at the photos and it gives her some context of her life and just kind of understanding that some things were really outside of her control. She is doing the best that she possibly can and really flourishing even amongst a lot of struggle.”
On looking back at the photos today
CASTO: “Yeah, there'll be times where I will still go back to those photos. She has a bunch of pictures of me and my grandpa. With my grandpa's passing, I'll still go back to those pictures. And I'm just so happy that she was there to capture them because if not I would never have those pictures.”
MCGARVEY: “I'm just so thankful for Paige and her openness too. Just like being able to let someone like me in from an early age and just be a part of her family. It's truly an honor. I'm just always thankful for her openness and being willing to be on the other side of the camera and have me in her life. It's not something I take for granted.”
