Francine Orr grew up in Colorado and graduated from the University of Saint Mary, in Leavenworth, Kan., a small liberal arts college where she earned degrees in both history and art in 1986. Orr was a Peace Corps volunteer in Yap in Federated States of Micronesia before beginning her career as a photojournalist. While living in a Yapese village and working with visiting anthropologists and documentary teams, she learned how to be a quiet observer. She has also worked extensively in Africa and Asia. She is a staff photojournalist with the Los Angeles Times and has won numerous awards for her journalism.

Orr was profoundly affected by images of the American civil rights movement, part of her reason for pursuing a degree in history and a career in photojournalism. Her six-part series focused on poverty in Africa entitled: “Living on Pennies,” in collaboration with now managing editor of the Los Angeles Davan Maharaj, inspired Los Angeles Times readers to donate tens of thousands of dollars to aid agencies working in Africa.

francine.orr@latimes.com