Intern Goodness

ROAR

2009-12-07T11:18:00.000-08:00

well my little intern pretties,

i was at a meeting this weekend with a university student group. They are in charge of putting together programs for their fellow classmates. We were discussing how to get volunteers together for a social/ volunteer fundraising event. I discussed the tactics that we use here at the IC and how dedicated my interns were. This person continually interrupted me and said, "to be honest" blablablablabala your plan won't work. I became frustrated.

So, what did i say? Well of course it can, i have students who attend large club meetings, participate in week long activities and go to socials all the time, granted my interns are the shiz-nit. The nasty nay-sayer responded with, "Well high school students aren't the same as college students, they don't have jobs, or homework, they don't have all these other volunteer commitments that keep them busy.

I nearly peed myself i was so angry.

But really, i needed the help of the group, and so i couldn't yell at her, or tell her off at that moment, so i just said, " you'd be surprised" and let her go on. In my gut i was about to walk out of the room. I felt so indignant, so insulted, and underestimated.

To the moral of the story, little minions, is that you ROCK! This twenty-sumthin know-it-all didn't even have the motivation to do a simple social event, and you work endlessly to make things happen at your schools. Her assumptions were ignorant, simplistic, and far to condescending for a group of young leaders whos' work would blow her out of the water.

Keep it up friends, you are amazing, hard working, renegades.

Thanksgiving?

2009-11-26T12:30:00.001-08:00

Hellllloooooo interns and people!
I like lists. Lets make one.
1. The empty blog
2. Interfaith
3. I have a life again!
4. Thanksgiving?
Sooo. On the first note.
The blog is very empty. This is a no-no.
I have officially written in it, so I am not to blame.... =P
Secondly. Interfaith service was great! It was smooth, simple, and enlightening! Thank you for putting together the spiritual gathering. And happy 20 years of interfaith services!
Yeah.
Thirdly.
The musical at my school is OOVVVEERR! I will now be in the office much, much more! And I won't be at school until 6pm. Thank heavens.
And last, but not least.
HAPPY THANKSGIVING!
I know I'm thankful. And I'm going to eat really welllll....Mmmmm....
I can't wait to eat. I love to eat, eating is the best.
I put a question mark on this one in my list for two reasons.
My first is the stream of "OMG HAPPY THANKSGIVING :)" texts I got was somewhat nightmare-ish. Obviously it's thanksgiving. Thank you for the twenty reminders. And half of them were from people who never talk to me otherwise. But, we don't rant in the Intern Goodness blog.
My second note is that through the stream of texts, I got a very negative one. I won't say who sent it, or what it said. But, it was sort of interesting, that poor thought all alone in my inbox.
So, I hope you have a happy thanksgiving.
See y'all soon.
- Love, food, and the love of food
And the smell of food from the kitchen...and the spatula slap on the hand when you tried to steal some cornbread.

Hahahah! This text is so totally random! Whoa! Oh, hey, guess what Interns? I cleaned my room yesterday! It's prettttyyy. I'm also bored, and was kicked out of the kitchen. Apparently I was 'hovering'. I can only be in the kitchen if I'm helping, which I wasn't.

Love you! xD

calendefunct

2009-11-02T09:18:00.000-08:00

Woe is the Intern Coordinator, for what may she do if there is not an intern to be present?
And how may an intern be present, if none are scheduled?
with no one signing up to visit the office, the result is inevitable:
"is anyone in the office today???" a question texted, called, or emailed....
WOE, WOE, WOE!!

Club Application Help

2009-08-30T13:02:00.000-07:00

So as you know this is East's first year for a club.
On the application it askes for the purpose of the club and possible activities.
I know why I want to have the club braught to East, but I dont know how to put that into words. Its really hard to put Anytown into a small little statement and make it sound offical.
Anyone got any ideas, alumni and current interns alike.
Also I only have the ideas from the manual for activities. [ Thank goodness for Maria and those manuals ]

Someone help!

Intern Family Potluck Dinner

2009-08-19T16:40:00.000-07:00

Hey all!
Remember the Intern Family Potluck Dinner on September 4th at 6:30-8:00 PM.
It will be at the Inclusion Center Office. Please bring your parents and a sibling or two with you to learn about your work and who we are at the Inclusion Center. What will you bring?

Anytown

2009-07-30T11:36:00.000-07:00

Well howdy trusted interns, old and new,

As you may have heard, Anytown 2009 ROCKED the house this year. With 43 youth and 24 staff, we had a full house, and the constant rain made sure we were kept inside it. What a week!
The only way i can describe this camp is to compare it to my delegate camp ('03). I remember sitting in the lodge on the night of 5 levels with a feeling of newness. An awareness that penetrated to my core, and the knowledge that i was sharing that feeling with everyone in the room. I guess that i realized how much i belonged to my fellow delegates... At this camp, i saw the delegates find that in eachother, a sense of belonging to one another.
Was this camp perfect? no. But like we asked the delegates after separation, what does perfect look like? The truth is that this camp carried with it the grittiness of everyday life, and the passion needed to get through it.
But you interns, you were amazing. Each counselor stepped up to the plate, handling issues and disruptions as if they were less than the dirt on your shoes. In all my time i have never seen a group do so well on their own, in creating AWESOME skits, great facilitation, and wonderful growth.
Thank you.

Preparation, Parades, and Pranks.

2009-06-12T13:27:00.000-07:00

Hello, Everybody!

Anytown has come upon us and it's only a day away. I've come to this realization as I sat on the ground packing, an unusual, day before staff heads up. As I was doing this I began reflecting on past camps; looking at my "Hugs" and whatnot. I also began thinking of the recent events that had the "campy" feel to them.

Sunday was one of these events, Pride Parade. As the day began it was already horrendously gloomy. As I looked around I saw people preparing for their floats and looking to the sky praying, hoping Mother Nature would give us sunshine. We learned that day that Mother Nature is a Bigot. The rain fell hard on heads, just as hard as the Nineties hit Mili Vanili. We on the Inclusion Center float however, did not let this little bit of precipitation ruin our day. We carried on to Vogue and march our tired legs and feet. And at the end of the parade - one and all soaked, we had pulled through with smiles and Golf Clubs in hand. This attitude of taking the day for what it was - pride parade and not what it seemed, gloomy and unloving, had put me in the Anytown mood.

As tradition with almost any Camp that I've been to, I had thought I lost something. In the past it's been prayer bracelets, shoes, and headlamps. This year, I thought i had lost something before the camp even began, one of my recruits! After reminding one of the soon-to-be-delegates to begin packing, he had told me he wasn't comming. He claimed that one of the Anytown Counselors had told him not to come. After hearing this it was my duty to follow up, and follow I did. I called this counselor in question and after hearing a rushed explanation of, "He's been talking [smack] about me, spreading rumors, and pictures." Assuring this counselor that the said delegate would do nothing of the sort, I recieved a backlash of, "I can't beleive you're taking his side!" After abruptly ending the conversation I rushed my booty over to the Inclusion Center, seeking advice from the oh-so-wise, Emm. After being assured that everything was ok I carried on the day worrying but assuring myself that it would all work out. It was later that night when I recieved a call reavealing the whole ordeal as a hoax. Seriously guys, seriously?

As I look back upon these events I'm reminded of one thing; Anytown isn't a place, it's a way of life. Whether it be passing the judgement of first glances at anything from a gloomy day or person, to losing something and having it work out in the end, Anytown has taught me the best characteristics I have learned these past few years. Without the community that's built at each camp this would not be possible. So, I thank everybody that's ever been involved in any part of the process along with me, and those that continue the work for others. Thank You.

Intern Camping Trip

2009-06-04T07:12:00.000-07:00

The Intern Gods shone down upon the inclusion center interns this last weekend, as they embarked on their first out door camping trip together.
After driving for unsaid miles into nothingness and braving a world without maps for direction, our small caravan found its way to Bullhorn Wash. The sky was clear, the rocks were red and the toilets smelled. like dooodooo.
the Interns set about quickly to put together their campsite, and their first mission was to break two tents. after seeing this mission accomplished they decided to learn new skills about making fire from the alpha male, Sara.
with fire making beyond the scope of their skill the entire team bowed down to the great alpha male to hold our rag-a-band group together in safety.
It was around this time that the Interns discovered that their jockstrap team had forgotten to pack water. what would they do now?
The interns, in panic and concern immediately ordered the jockstraps to cross the desert again.The little mission was sent off, and as a community offering to the alpha male the missionary team sacrificed a snake .
As the rain clouds began to roll in our team decided to make a lean-to in order to protect themselves. this mission was a treacherous one.
that night the team feasted on hobo dinners and smores, and after hearing the many stories of psycho killers and donkey ladies, the crazy kids decided to end the night with games of assassin and manhunt.
after a fearful alarm in the night, in which one intern woke up without knowing where he was, the team slept peacefully.
the next morning began the exodus across the desert again, and into a town called Price. the group met the local tribe at the JB diner and partook of their local foods. Slimy, and yet, satisfying.
the interns traveled home, full circle to the place of their inception, the Inclusion Center.
And so ends the story.

From One Intern to Another

2009-05-29T20:37:00.000-07:00

Dear fellow interns (Wuthea, Teddy, Freddie, Darby, Gabi, Chau, Polly), future interns, and friends of interns,

First, let me make sure we’ve been formally introduced. I know many of us have met in passing at Inclusion Center events, but that’s a sad substitute for a proper introduction. My name is Josh Newbury and I, like you, am an intern for the Inclusion Center. My particular internship is a requirement for my Bachelors in Social Work, but once upon a time I too was a high school intern. You better believe I miss it, and would do it all over again if I had the chance.

As you know from your own experiences, your own struggles to create inclusive schools free of segregated lunch rooms and oppressive bullying, being an intern can be tough work. Don’t get me wrong, it certainly rewards endlessly -- from the numberless opportunities you have to meet people from all over Salt Lake City, to the close-knit friendships that you form among each other and with your coordinator (in this case, Home Skillet Biscuit Maria Gasper). Being an intern rocks the Cashba, and it puts the smeds and the retah’s to shame.

Nonetheless, interning can be rough work, and you balance it with sports, friends, school, and your post-high school aspirations. What amazes me most about Inclusion Center interns is that they choose - when they could choose otherwise - to get an early start on building community through profound love and a commitment to fairness. This is a significant choice when you consider that so many of our peers, and even our superiors, have decided to opt out of instigating opportunity and justice for all us, not just some of us. You know and do so much so early, and for those around you your actions and your words are liberating and inspiring. As your fellow intern, I am not immune to your influence.

With the utmost sincerity I want to thank you for being with the Inclusion during The Arts and Activism. It would not have gone down as smoothly as it did without you or the friends you brought. I hope you know that bringing 25+ together to do a kind of social justice works speaks volumes about who you are and what you can do. You, your friends, and the future interns, changed the space and energy inside the Public Library. Your excitement, your willingness to give up your Friday evening, your passion for learning about the art made that building feel like a place we all love/will soon have the chance to love: Camp Anytown. Bringing the spirit of Anytown down to the valley is a challenge we’ve all been charged with as Anytowners, and when it happens it deserves proper recognition and praise.

With so much admiration and respect I want to thank you for your help, your passion, and your ability to inspire even your slightly older intern counterpart. You’ve taught me that change, undoubtedly, is coming quick.

In solidarity and love,

Your fellow intern Josh

P.S. I’ll be seeing many of you at camp!

Intern Goodness

2009-04-29T21:09:00.001-07:00

When i was sixteen, i became and intern for what is currently known as the Inclusion Center. I immediately fell into a tight- knit group of interns from different schools all along the Wasatch Front. These other interns became my backbone when i was arguing with principals about 'appropriate content,' my soul when i attended Anytown retreats, and my air when i was the only one up at night still working on a project.

As an intern group, 14 youth shared the woes of activism and teenage strife together. We attended plays, planned campaigns, held sleep-overs, and regularly ditched class to volunteer, together. It was not uncommon for us to argue with our staff that they should leave us in the office after everyone had gone home so that we could remain together in conversation. When that failed, we usually retreated to a coffee shop or diner where we could continue our conversations and our journey together.

Six years later, i am in charge of coordinating the internship at the Inclusion Center. Tonight i witnessed my interns behave as family, not just colleagues. It was a simple trip to Baskin Robbins, but they did it on their own, with their own time and love. It struck a chord so deep in my heart that i knew it was time to create a place for the interns to discuss projects, campaigns, retreats, issues, and life.

This blog is for the interns of today-- brought to you by the internship of yesterday.