You haven’t heard from me in several weeks, so let’s fix that!
I have been out and about in the city of Fort Worth, toured some farms in Aubrey and Pilot Point and have been to New Orleans and back. It’s been a busy couple of weeks…and the next couple weeks will be busy as well.
After the World Show it seemed like I had lots of different things going on, which was nice. I was able to go to the NCHA Summer Spectacular and see the youth finals, which was a great time, and a couple weeks later (that show lasts forever!) I came back for the open finals. One of my favorite things about Texas is that there is no shortage of cattle events—obviously, since there’s a lot of corn and not a lot of cattle, we don’t get much of that in Illinois.
Somewhere in between I made a little jaunt to New Orleans for the Ag Media Summit. I was excited to network with so many new agricultural communications professionals, and was also able to blog on agriculture.com. Though I’m sure my entries didn’t have too many hits, that’s an opportunity that isn’t provided to many students.
AMS also brought with it the Forrest Bassford award interviews, which I thought went well. I met the other finalists, Shannon Watson and Andy Barth, both from Oklahoma State University, and met up with the last finalist, my roommate Jill. She was fortunate to win the award, and I know all the folks at U of I are very proud of her!
After returning from AMS, it was back to work for a few weeks. I immediately wrote a press release about the NEW fall internships that APHA is offering this September. The deadline is August 15, 2011. (Disclaimer: I try to avoid shameless plugs where possible—but who am I kidding? I’m looking toward a career in PR.)
I also got started on a commemorative 50th anniversary APHA calendar. This has involved lots of research on my part, but it has also yielded interesting information. Some of my favorite finds: ads for paint horse stereo knobs and several old photos of my co-workers. That’s been fun! See my blog for more.
Though I am sorry to say this week is my last with APHA, I have made lots of friends and plenty of memories. Honestly, if I could stay with this position and this job, I would. I have certainly learned of the responsibilities and challenges, as well as the benefits of Association work.
What better of a place to live and work but in Fort Worth, Texas (officially my favorite U.S. city) at the American Paint Horse Association! I certainly have more photos and stories to share, so for a more in-depth look, please visit my website or blog.
… aka Mac and Cheese haha… these are brave men… just ask Terry.
