In fact, it was so fabulous, I sent apologies to all of our previous interns for not spending time with them.

Earlier this summer I told you about Emily Kesler from Northwestern, Cristina Dickos from The Ohio State University, and Zachary Koozer from the University of Akron. They were each hired for a specific job:

Emily assisted Joe May, Social Media Coordinator, to review sites and wrote some excellent posts for our blog.

Cristina worked directly for me to manage my overwhelming American Express bill and to help with many administrative duties. I have to say Cristina was amazing. She was far more professional than four temps we had in that same position over the last 12 months.

Zachary helped Ken Kelewae update our computers in the office to Microsoft 7. He also learned that many of us use our keyboard as a placemat. He cleaned out all of our keyboards.

In addition, they joined me at meetings for the United Way of Summit County Board, Social Services Advisory Board, and the Greater Akron Chamber of Commerce. They met Mayor Don Plusquellic at a great event at Firestone Country Club before the Bridgestone Tournament. The Chamber had small group meetings to discuss internships in the city and my team joined the presidents of Akron hospitals, banks, and companies to share their experiences.

They also helped with some local service programs. We worked with Good Samaritans to help distribute food to 150 families. One day this summer, they joined several on staff in the United Way Day of Action cleaning and painting the Edgerton House in Akron.

And, we also had fun. One field trip was to a building where the owner keeps antique cars, many of them used in local parades, in his basement.

Yes, it was a great summer. It was also very financially beneficial to them. Each worked more than 300 hours and received a bonus of $3 for every hour worked. We ended the summer with our annual United Way campaign kickoff lunch and wished them all well when they go to school.

Until next month, think about an internship program at your organization. Give me a call if you have any questions.