Annie is doing
her internship at Eyes, Ears, Nose & Paws, an organization that trains
service dogs. I don't know how they got these dogs to pose like this! They
must be well-trained.
Audrey and Lydia are doing their internships at the Nicholas School of the
Environment at Duke University. They are working with a particular
species of microscopic worm (with a long Latin-based name), and studying
how small changes to the DNA of the worm might affect its future (and that of
other species). They have also spent time shadowing
several researchers, in order to see what type of work a career in biology
might hold for them. The staff at the lab is very diverse /
international, and range from undergraduate to
doctoral-level. Audrey and Lydia's supervisor reports that they
were academically well-prepared for the job.
Here is Nick
during his internship at Trailblazer Studios in Raleigh. Trailblazer does
production work for a variety of clients in the television, radio, and music
industries. Nick has been focusing primarily on audio editing, and has
worked on several different projects. He's been collaborating with
another intern from Appalachia State who has been taking course work there in
their program in Recording and Production. They have worked together on a
shoe commercial, a TV series, and Nick has done some multi-track recording of
his own guitar pieces. Nick is getting
Clara is spending two weeks at Elodie Farms, just outside Bahama, NC.
Elodie's most well-known product is its cheeses: they use goats' milk to
produce several varieties of French cheese, made from authentic 'signed,
sealed, and delivered' cultures. They market their
cheeses primarily to restaurants and high-end retailers around the Triangle
(you can also get them at the Farmers' Markets). Elodie has around
25 milking goats, and now has eight young goats (!) that are being weaned
from their mothers. Clara has been performing a variety of duties
around the farm, including the many steps in preparing cheese from
raw milk. (She was also able to participate in one of their
recent Dinner on the Porch events, where she met and worked with several
area chefs). But she says that her favorite activity by far is
feeding the baby goats their formula!
These pics don't really convey the feeding frenzy that began as we
approached the fence - the little fellas were climbing all over each other to
get at the bottles!
Elodie Farms also does tours - it's a really interesting place to
visit!
Here is a lovely sideways pic of Esten
at Que Pasa Media Center in Raleigh, where he is doing his internship.
Esten went into this assignment with the goals of improving his Spanish,
learning about Hispanic culture, and becoming more aware of current
events in the Triangle area. According to his supervisors, he came
in with a very functional ability in Spanish, and has now taken
his skills to the next level by working on subtleties and nuance of
expression. The staff at Que Pasa hail from a variety
of Central and South American countries, including Argentina, Peru, and
Colombia. They were eager to introduce Esten to the diversity of the Hispanic world, and they hope that he will share his appreciation and
awareness with others.
One of the highlights of his internship was the opportunity
to film a professional soccer match, which, with some editing assistance,
produced a very impressive video of the event. With an official
press pass, Esten was able to get really close to the action, but he
learned the hard way that the journalists with the biggest lenses get the
right of way! Esten also wrote three articles that were posted
on the Que Pasa website, and he has the beginnings of a journalism portfolio
well underway.
OTHER TRIP UPDATES: As I write this blog on Saturday afternoon, I await the return of the Adirondacks trip with Dave Worden and Guillermo. I talked with them earlier today. Sounds like they have had a great time climbing mountains, canoeing, kayaking, and camping. The freshmen had a well-deserved low-key day today in Newton Grove. They had a choice today: a state park, blueberry picking, bowling, or resting at the ministry. They have visited many camps, played soccer with the farmworkers, and enjoyed a wonderful dinner on Friday, which was prepared and delivered by parents. All is well in Nicaragua. I guess they have dealt with some stomach irritations, but the group has been great and the service has gone well. I was sad to leave Trinidad halfway through the trip. For service, our students are painting every room at the children's home and building a new home for Habitat for Humanity. According to Frances, all is well in the Galapagos. As usual, we have had little word from Bob and his crew who are out west. Last I heard, they had visited the Grand Canyon and were headed out on the Green River. Bob is never one for consistent communication.
The Adirondacks group just arrived. Yay! It always feels good when trips return safe and sound. Trinidad will return Monday night, and the rest of the groups come home on Tuesday. We have a full day of school on Thursday and a noon dismissal on Friday.
