I Have My Own Spinny Chair! -- My Experience as a Public Affairs Intern

I am a rising junior at St. Mary's College of Maryland, a little liberal arts school just a few miles from NAS Patuxent River, so when I heard about this internship through my career development center I gathered together my resume and writing samples and attended an introduction meeting hosted by two PAOs. My close proximity to the base throughout two years of school made it impossible not to hear about base activities, so I was intrigued by the opportunity of working "behind the scenes." I also wanted to improve the public affairs skills that I developed working for the public affairs office at St. Mary's.

My internship experience has flown by so far. I began working in mid-May and will finish at the beginning of August. I work up to three days a week on base and spend the remaining days working at St. Mary's (to fund my pricey Indian food habit). I was assigned NAS Patuxent River Public Affairs officer Connie Hempel as a mentor--she is in charge of the Tester newspaper, which details the activities of all tenants on the installation. As such, I've been able to work on a variety of articles, photo opportunities, and other miscellaneous projects with Connie's extensive experience and advice as a support.

The most difficult part of this internship at first was finding my way around base; I'd never driven on base before, so when I went to take photos of a logging project in some remote corner of the installation, I thought for sure I'd be lost forever. But I have no problem navigating the installation now, thanks to the diversity of projects I've been assigned, which have allowed me to meet an assortment of military, civilian and contracting personnel employed here.

The most influential facet of my internship thus far has been the positive and helpful attitude held by the vast majority of people I've come in contact with on base. Whether I'm interviewing someone, asking for help with a project, or even grabbing lunch at Subway, people are helpful, pleasant and dedicated to their work. This internship has demonstrated the importance of loving your job. I hope to can build on this experience to find my own dream job.

Now off to photograph a motorcycle safety training course (what are the chances they let me ride?).