Using new media to document a dying industrial past

When Mike Lewis graduated from Patterson High School in 1978, he rapidly secured job offers at the post office, a General Motors plant and a paint factory, before accepting a position at the steel mill, where his grandfather and uncle had also worked.

"At that time, you could graduate from high school and provide a good life for your family," he said. "There were employment opportunities for my generation that are not really open to people coming out of high school today."