My new experiences in Extension so far!

It has been about a month since I’ve started at the Jefferson County Extension office and I have enjoyed every minute of it. From getting the intern position, I came into this not knowing much about 4-H and not knowing what to expect. My first day was very welcoming. I knew it was going to be a very fun and busy summer. With this job I like how I am not always sitting at a desk but constantly on the move with things to do like traveling to camps, trainings, farms, teaching classes on campus, and attending meetings. I have done plenty already and experienced so much and still have a lot more to go.

My time here I have spent days in the office where I’ve attended meetings and helped plan 4-H camp. It took me behind the scenes on what it is like to actually plan a camp and all that goes into it. It takes a LOT!! I helped participate in the fundraiser at a golf course which is one of the big fundraisers for 4-H in this county. I haven’t been exposed to golf often so that was something new to me. Last week I teamed up with Franklin County and went to Broadway Clay where they had a project with children from the king center. Here we made pottery which is something I haven’t experienced. It wasn’t easy but I had fun learning. Later that day we visited a horse farm and fed the horses. It’s not an everyday thing for me to be on a farm with horses but I enjoyed it even though I was a little scared at first. Also with Franklin County I helped lead a workshop on healthy snacks at Teen Conference then we attended Cloverbud Camp this past weekend. We participated in a lot of fun activities with the kids including ones I never done before like getting on a canoe and archery.

This internship is giving me a taste of how it is going to be like in the professional world when I am done with school and have a real job. I feel that it is preparing me for that. I am working with different people in different environments and learning how to plan programs. This is helping me grow as a person and develop more into my professional self.