Hey fellow interns,
This is Blade finally signing off from my internship at Volunteering WA, with my last day being on the 20th of May. My last day was relatively quiet, but when I arrived at the Office I was greeted with a gift bag on my desk containing wine and chocolates as a thank you for the work I had put in over the course of my internship. To be honest, it was quite touching that their appreciation had reached that far - I was simply happy to just help out.
When I reflected back upon from when I'd started there, and leaving on my last day - the one thing that really stood out to me that had changed was how much more comfortable I was in the office. It was much easier to chat casually with the staff, who had been nothing but friendly and invited me into their close knit family. It felt awkward to be saying goodbye, but I suppose one can't intern forever! As a small token of my appreciation, I purchased 2 bottles of wine for the office - it had been somewhat of a dilemma trying to decide between getting something for everyone or specifically my supervisor, but everyone had been far too welcoming and nice to me so I wanted to say thanks to everyone.
Although Volunteering WA wasn't necessarily where I pictured my first internship being, it was a pleasant surprise that completely surpassed my expectations. To be able to work alongside people whom so tirelessly dedicate their time and effort to furthering the community in such a positive way was a real honour, and to any future interns looking for placements I would highly recommend VWA without hesitation.
Now, although I don't think I was perhaps the perfect intern - I was pretty pleased with the outcome of the work I had produced for them, and it was a positive learning experience of some of the occurrences I should expect as an upcoming professional. Things such as reporting to a supervisor, thoroughly editing your work and comprehensive attention to detail are sometimes easy things to forget or process with varying levels of effort - but in PR we should always be striving for a high standard of communication and enthusiasm.
Funnily enough, the Gala Dinner and Awards Night had left me with another situation. I've previously done some volunteering work before, but it has been a considerable time since my last commitment. However, there was a particular award recipient called the YMCA Big Brother, Big Sister program - which essentially recruits volunteers in a buddy program with children from diverse backgrounds. This was something that really resonated with me, so I decided at the close of semester I would apply to be taken into the program.
I just want to give a particular mention to everyone at VWA - especially Jen Wyness and Felicity Stevens who I worked so closely with over my internship. To say thank you for allowing me the freedom to be creative and explore my ideas, and also for making me feel like a part of the team - it was really fantastic.
To all my fellow interns, we're almost there! And to those finishing up their placement, or those who are just working on their reports - good luck, and god speed. Thanks for reading my posts over the semester, and I look forward to seeing how everyone else finished up.
Blade Shaw
14755556
Showing posts with label Volunteering WA. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Volunteering WA. Show all posts
Sunday, May 26, 2013
Thursday, May 23, 2013
The Thick of Battle - The PR Journeyman, Part III
Greetings fellow interns,
Last week was a highly busy one in the VWA offices, being that it was National Volunteer Week it meant that there were a number of things happening all at once. All the staff were working incredibly hard, with most focused on the National Volunteer Week Gala Dinner and Volunteer of the Year awards night. This meant when I arrived at the Offices bright and early on Monday morning, things were already in full swing.
The main crux of my work had already been completed with the collaboration of the Communication Plan for the Volunteer Profile over NVW, so I was simply expecting to be spending the week completing odd jobs and tasks that had been put on the back-burner. However, never let it be said that internships are predictable - and so I was approached soon after arriving to see if I would like to go and man the Red Ribbon table on Murray Street. For those unfamiliar with the Red Ribbon project, over NVW Volunteering WA amasses signatures from all across WA from volunteers, and people who want to simply say "Thank you" to volunteers as well. On December 5th which is International Volunteer Day, the ribbon will be then wrapped around Government House. Pretty cool huh?
It was a very interesting, and also humbling experience working those few hours and having to approach complete strangers to ask them for five seconds of their time. You can really get to viewing a telling snapshot regarding the full scope of human perspective doing something like that, which can be both uplifting and disappointing at the same time. Ultimately though, I really got a lot of getting out there and talking to a range of different people - and my assumptions would be that during the time I was there, we would have easily collected between 100-125 signatures which was pretty great!
Wednesday was however the most important of the days during NVW, culminating in not only the Gala Dinner/Awards Night but also the launch of the GoVolunteer Volunteer Profile which is what I have been working on with the Services team at VWA. To see all the hard work our team had put in during the 2 months I had been there, and past that was really uplifting and felt a perfect way to wind down towards the end of my internship. It was a real pleasure to also be able to celebrate the triumphs of a lot of hard-working people in our community, and even managed to inspire both my partner and I to consider new volunteering opportunities.
That's it from the PR Journeyman on my 3rd post, however please keep following me to the end of my internship with my next post which will highlight the closing of my last day! Thanks all, and good luck to any who might still be finishing.
Last week was a highly busy one in the VWA offices, being that it was National Volunteer Week it meant that there were a number of things happening all at once. All the staff were working incredibly hard, with most focused on the National Volunteer Week Gala Dinner and Volunteer of the Year awards night. This meant when I arrived at the Offices bright and early on Monday morning, things were already in full swing.
The main crux of my work had already been completed with the collaboration of the Communication Plan for the Volunteer Profile over NVW, so I was simply expecting to be spending the week completing odd jobs and tasks that had been put on the back-burner. However, never let it be said that internships are predictable - and so I was approached soon after arriving to see if I would like to go and man the Red Ribbon table on Murray Street. For those unfamiliar with the Red Ribbon project, over NVW Volunteering WA amasses signatures from all across WA from volunteers, and people who want to simply say "Thank you" to volunteers as well. On December 5th which is International Volunteer Day, the ribbon will be then wrapped around Government House. Pretty cool huh?
It was a very interesting, and also humbling experience working those few hours and having to approach complete strangers to ask them for five seconds of their time. You can really get to viewing a telling snapshot regarding the full scope of human perspective doing something like that, which can be both uplifting and disappointing at the same time. Ultimately though, I really got a lot of getting out there and talking to a range of different people - and my assumptions would be that during the time I was there, we would have easily collected between 100-125 signatures which was pretty great!
 |
| Denise Bertilone manning the Red Ribbon - 13/05/2013 |
Wednesday was however the most important of the days during NVW, culminating in not only the Gala Dinner/Awards Night but also the launch of the GoVolunteer Volunteer Profile which is what I have been working on with the Services team at VWA. To see all the hard work our team had put in during the 2 months I had been there, and past that was really uplifting and felt a perfect way to wind down towards the end of my internship. It was a real pleasure to also be able to celebrate the triumphs of a lot of hard-working people in our community, and even managed to inspire both my partner and I to consider new volunteering opportunities.
That's it from the PR Journeyman on my 3rd post, however please keep following me to the end of my internship with my next post which will highlight the closing of my last day! Thanks all, and good luck to any who might still be finishing.
Thursday, May 2, 2013
Cresting the Hill - The PR Journeyman Part II
Hey fellow interns,
Since I last blogged there's been a number of exciting things happening at my placement at Volunteering WA. As I mentioned at the end of my last post, I was getting some help from a friend of mine at Murdoch who's studying Screen Production to film a video for YouTube.
Needless to say, it was a highly interesting experience. I've previously been involved in stage productions in high school, and have recently started pod-casting for a page I run on Facebook - but this was the first time I've sat by myself and essentially monologued to a camera. It was really unnerving to be perfectly honest, and we ended up shooting for an hour to come up with about 3 minutes worth of edited footage - Zak was quick to inform me that I was not cut out for a career in acting, and I think I would have to highly agree!
The final product was really well put together though, and I will provide a link on my last post when it has been put up on YouTube - so there's something to look forward to!
Besides that, I have been working very closely with the Services Team at VWA as we gear up towards the launch of their currently undisclosed new feature that will be launched at their Gala Dinner and Awards Night on the 15th of this month. I'm really excited, as not only were my partner and I offered tickets to attend - but I think it's going to be amazing to see all the work our team has been putting in unfold in a night of celebration, and to see how that translates over the early life of the launch.
I took part in helping write for their monthly newsletter for GoVolunteer, which was really quite helpful in brushing up on my skills - I used to write for a number of other newsletters, but hadn't done so for quite some time. I always find it's easier to say more than say less, and the art of writing a newsletter piece has to obviously be quite succinct. Thankfully there wasn't a great deal of editing, so the newsletter went out on time and I was able to add another piece to my portfolio which is always a great thing too!
My main focus this week has been writing up a Communications Plan for VWA and the other state peak bodies which should hopefully be getting sent out tomorrow. It has been exhausting work, and the research has been quite extensive - but I'm so thankful for all the study that I've done so far, it really has been nothing but a permanent state of reflection as I look back to reference what I've learned and apply it relevantly to my current scenario.
I've really enjoyed my time so far at VWA - and I think it's been an experience for both myself and the services team in working together. It's quite sad to think that my last day is only a little over 2 weeks away, but what I've taken away from this has been invaluable to me and I think will aid me greatly for when I seek my next internship.
Once again, thank you to those who have taken the time to read about my experiences at VWA. Please make sure to read my next post, which will hopefully be the night after the Gala dinner - plenty of photos and stories to share!
Good luck to all - and I look forward to reading about you!
Blade
14755556
Since I last blogged there's been a number of exciting things happening at my placement at Volunteering WA. As I mentioned at the end of my last post, I was getting some help from a friend of mine at Murdoch who's studying Screen Production to film a video for YouTube.
Needless to say, it was a highly interesting experience. I've previously been involved in stage productions in high school, and have recently started pod-casting for a page I run on Facebook - but this was the first time I've sat by myself and essentially monologued to a camera. It was really unnerving to be perfectly honest, and we ended up shooting for an hour to come up with about 3 minutes worth of edited footage - Zak was quick to inform me that I was not cut out for a career in acting, and I think I would have to highly agree!
The final product was really well put together though, and I will provide a link on my last post when it has been put up on YouTube - so there's something to look forward to!
Besides that, I have been working very closely with the Services Team at VWA as we gear up towards the launch of their currently undisclosed new feature that will be launched at their Gala Dinner and Awards Night on the 15th of this month. I'm really excited, as not only were my partner and I offered tickets to attend - but I think it's going to be amazing to see all the work our team has been putting in unfold in a night of celebration, and to see how that translates over the early life of the launch.
I took part in helping write for their monthly newsletter for GoVolunteer, which was really quite helpful in brushing up on my skills - I used to write for a number of other newsletters, but hadn't done so for quite some time. I always find it's easier to say more than say less, and the art of writing a newsletter piece has to obviously be quite succinct. Thankfully there wasn't a great deal of editing, so the newsletter went out on time and I was able to add another piece to my portfolio which is always a great thing too!
My main focus this week has been writing up a Communications Plan for VWA and the other state peak bodies which should hopefully be getting sent out tomorrow. It has been exhausting work, and the research has been quite extensive - but I'm so thankful for all the study that I've done so far, it really has been nothing but a permanent state of reflection as I look back to reference what I've learned and apply it relevantly to my current scenario.
I've really enjoyed my time so far at VWA - and I think it's been an experience for both myself and the services team in working together. It's quite sad to think that my last day is only a little over 2 weeks away, but what I've taken away from this has been invaluable to me and I think will aid me greatly for when I seek my next internship.
Once again, thank you to those who have taken the time to read about my experiences at VWA. Please make sure to read my next post, which will hopefully be the night after the Gala dinner - plenty of photos and stories to share!
Good luck to all - and I look forward to reading about you!
Blade
14755556
Friday, April 5, 2013
The PR Journeyman: Ready, Set, Go!
Greetings fellow students!
For those who don't know me, my name is Blade Shaw and I'm currently in my final year of a Bachelor of Commerce - majoring in Public Relations. For a little insight to my background, I've had some previous experience acting within PR/Communications roles in two different businesses - Morris Computers and Pro Used Pty Ltd, both which are heavily interlinked with the IT industry.
As a student, I've just come off 2 years running on the Public Relations Student Chapter serving as both Secretary and Vice President respectively over 2011/2012. It was my decision at the end of the year to step down and concentrate on my final year, and PR Professional Practice was one of the many units I knew would require my full attention.
Over the University break, as I'm sure most of us did - I looked long and hard for an internship which I thought would best fit my interests, and contacted a number of organisations respectively. Luckily, I was contacted by Volunteering WA - who were very forthcoming and were quite interested in getting me on board after our initial contact.
Before I commenced my placement, I went into the offices and sat down with Felicity Stevens who is the IT Support Officer at VWA - and also a member of the services team of which I'm currently working as a part of. Our meeting went quite well, and after she had guided me through a run-down of the tasks that the service team required me to perform, and that they thought would best suit my skill set.
I started on the 25th of March, and immediately was set to task learning the ins and outs of the organisation so that I would have a significant amount of background knowledge to work off. My first thoughts immediately alerted me to start jotting down ideas in regards to social media, website content, promotional ideas - whatever appeared not to be on offer through their current communications, I was looking to establish a strategy to create it or improve upon their existing practices.
So far, I've still been trying to find my feet at the end of my second week - however it appears I'm slowly beginning to pick up some pretty good momentum, and VWA have been quite open to allowing me to take a great deal of creative licence with the ideas I have for their organisation. At the start of next week, I will be sending out a brief to a number of different University clubs regarding an exciting new service that VWA will be offering.
I will also be conducting some filming for their YouTube channel, documenting some of the exciting new features of their upcoming service.It's been my luck that I have been blessed with a number of very talented personal contacts at my disposal, and will be joined by Zak Norris - a Murdoch Screen Product student who recently was awarded 1st place in Reach Out's Film Crew competition. His winning video can be found on YouTube at https://www.youtube.com/watch?feature=player_embedded&v=aJWE42n-LZ0
Thanks everyone for reading my first post, I'm really glad to have been able to share some insight into my first week at the Volunteering WA office. Please continue to check back with my blog entries, as I continue to document my experiences over the course of my placement.
Blade Shaw
14755556
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