As they prepare to leave their volunteer posts, the 2010-11 Bloomington Press Club interns reported on their experiences at the April 25 meeting of the Bloomington Press Club.
The club provides a $1,000 stipend to two students each year who then intern with an area nonprofit. IU journalism students Rachel Saltsgaver and Stephanie Kuschel spoke to members about the challenges and rewards of their programs.
Kuschel worked with Middle Way House, a shelter for victims of domestic abuse. Her tasks included creating newsletters, which required learning design and layout.
“But the best part was the people I worked with,” she said. “They were so knowledgeable and so passionate about what they do.”
Saltsgaver was an intern for Mother Hubbard’s Cupboard, a food pantry offering fresh and organic food to those in need. She created an online newsletter, mastering the software just about the time the organization switched to another program, she said. She also handled the social media for the organization, posting event news to Facebook.
“We have two major fundraisers, so I worked on those doing everything from taking photos to other publicity,” she said.
Saltsgaver, too, said she will aways remember the people she met, such as the 11-year-old who each year donates his birthday money to MHC.
“This year, he gave an amazing $600 to the organization,” Saltsgaver said. Software programs may come and go, she said, but “that’s the kind of thing I’ll never forget.”
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