Hello again,
Wow! This internship and summer went by super fast. Like way too fast. There is a saying, “time flies when you’re having fun” and I believe this completely. I had a blast this summer and learned a multitude of new skills. I have completed an internship through Ogallala Commons for three years now and this year, I have by far learned more than any other year. My internship was split up into three different parts.
I had the opportunity to help Shelby Thibodeaux, the Intern and Apprentice Program Coordinator. I did not realize all that she does for Ogallala Commons. I assisted her wherever she needed. I made various spreadsheets throughout the summer, I was in charge of all of the blogs, made phone calls and sent emails weekly, and updated the Twitter page frequently. For anyone who knows me, they know I am not the world’s’ best with technology, especially for my age. Throughout my whole internship, I learned the most helping Shelby Thibodeaux.
The second part of my internship was supervising the interns of Swisher County. I learned much throughout this role as well. I was a little worried on how it was going to go since I’m only a few years older than some of them. I had a great experience getting to know all four of them individually. I met with them once a week for lunch to discuss how they were doing and what they enjoyed, learned, etc. I texted the interns weekly to remind them when projects were due, to make sure they were contacting the business where they would be working ahead of time, etc. I decided to give each business an evaluation on the intern. It was great receiving feedback from the interns but I also wanted to get the business perspective about the intern program. This has been really helpful because I know what we need to do to in the future to improve the program and to address any issue if necessary. I am also in charge of their Harvesting Ceremony, where I made invitations and delivered them and will be making refreshments for it. I really liked being on the other end and working with the businesses in a different role. I have enjoyed being the supervisor of Swisher County.
The third part of my internship was helping with the annual Swisher County Picnic and Rodeo. A lot goes into planning and putting on a successful county wide gathering. I helped with most of the public relations. I had many signs and banners made that consisted of the donor’s name that was for the BBQ lunch, Entertainment on the Square, and Rodeo. One of the interns and I put up the signs and banners all through the town as well. I hung the flyer at several businesses in the county. The day of the picnic, my father and I sold tickets for the BBQ lunch. I also made a thank you note to send to all the donors and people who helped achieve a thriving picnic and rodeo.
I had a grand experience through this internship and I would like to thank Ogallala Commons for giving me this opportunity. A very special thank you is extended to Darryl Birkenfeld, Shelby Thibodeaux, and Calley Runnels. Ogallala Commons is an amazing non-profit organization to be part of and I would recommend it to everyone.
