[Insert bittersweet hello here] I am quickly approaching my final days in Washington D.C. and I can’t help but get a feeling of heartache. I’ve grown so much here, in many different ways that I hadn’t even anticipated. I feel transformed and empowered to move forward. My chapter in D.C. may be short one, but this place and these people that I have come to know in such a short span of time will always hold a special place in my heart.   Lutheran Services in America, because of you I am a better me. My time at LSA has been a journey in itself. From my first few days as a very nervous intern that was terrified to make a mistake to a confident professional with a voice that is no longer afraid to ask for help and has become inspired by power of social ministry and what you […]

“Artists have the power to see obstacles and create solutions and that is pretty beautiful,” an arts partner said to me when I met with him to talk about his partnership with Chicago Public Schools. There was a pause in the room. He continued. “Thank you for asking me to speak at the Partner Starter, it has given me the opportunity to pause and reflect on the qualities of partnership.” I smiled.   The arts partner told me that he used to be concerned with the outcome or “performance” of the students’ art pieces, but now he realizes the importance of the process for the students and that some students might not see how the arts influences them until later on in their life. You don’t always get to see the impact you have, but it is still important. Whether they consider themselves an artist or not, they are still […]

The Final 48 Growing up, my mom and I were super into crime shows, and one of the shows we always watched together was ‘The First 48’. While that probably isn’t a show I should have been watching at six years old (thanks mom), I clearly remember that the intro always said, “their chances of solving the case are cut in half after the first 48,” or “the first 48 is just the beginning.” Now you’re probably wondering what possible relation that could have to my summer (no worries, I am getting to it!). No matter the case, no matter the episode, the intro to every show always specified how much could have in the span of 48 hours. As I write this I realize that I have only 48 hours left with Ingenuity. It’s hard to believe that I only have one more full week (and one day) at […]

This has been an incredible summer full of personal and professional growth.  There have been so many significant changes that it is nearly impossible to put it into words.  When I moved out to Maryland, I really didn’t know what to expect.  I had a lot of questions such as:  “Who are these two other people I will be living with?”, “ What will I be doing?”, “How will I be able to contribute to this organization?”, “How can I represent Valpo and CAPS to the best of my ability?”.   The list went on and on and it was a bit nerve-racking. I learned that there is something in the water at Valpo and in Rockville (where you run into more Valpo graduates than you would think!).  Valparaiso University has provided me with so many useful tools that continue to set Valpo students  apart from other university students.  Valpo not […]

As I reflect upon my experience with Ancilla Systems, I realize I am looking through different eyes than when I began the summer. When I entered as the development team’s intern, my position tasks included attending meetings, grant-writing, and email-sending. Of course these things were a part of my regular schedule, yet I find myself reminiscing experiences that were much more impactful. One of my fondest memories includes interviewing Sisters who work or have worked in healthcare settings. Prior to our interviews, I was eager to meet the Sisters but I did not expect how much wisdom would be revealed during each conversation. Each Sister offered a very unique but consistent view of healthcare:  one that involved ministry. I loved hearing the compassion for the patients they served and the miracles they achieved in their healthcare careers. Every sister who I interviewed spoke about her love for developing relationships with […]

Washington D.C. in the summer months becomes more like Washington D. I. (the District of Interns).  Going to work in the morning on the Metro reveals large swaths of college age, well-dressed, people, on their way to the heart of the city.  If there is any doubt that these are interns, one only needs to look at their badges (governmental interns receive an identifiable “intern” badge) or listen in to their conversations.  Often times interns travel in friend groups, or work groups, headed to the same place.  In either case, they will often talk to each other about the kinds of work they are doing in so-and-so’s office or for this-or-that agency while on leave from their various universities and colleges located around the country. Noticing these large groups of people one is forced to wonder: why intern?  Is it the great pay and glamorous lifestyle?  No, that surely can’t […]

“You’re leaving next week? But you just got here!” Doesn’t it feel like that? It’s true what the saying says – time flies when you’re having fun! Time also flies when you are kept incredibly busy and everyday is filled with numerous learning opportunities and personal and professional challenges.   As my summer at The Village at Rockville (TVAR) in Maryland wraps up I can’t help but reflect on the time I have had here. From the people I have met, the meetings I have sat in on, the responsibilities I have been given and the times I’ve spent exploring the area – I look back and wonder how it all managed to happen during one CAPS Fellowship. I can honestly say that everything that happened was unexpected, challenging at times but so worth it. So worth the occasional discomfort, confusion, exhaustion, and hours of meetings. To give you a better […]

Hello from The District!   I don’t know if anybody else feels this way, but this summer has been FLYING BY. If feels like it was only a week ago I was beginning my time in our nation’s capital. Over the past month, I have been serving within the Marketing & Communications department at Lutheran Services in America, a health care and human services network that represents over 300 Lutheran nonprofit organizations and it has been an adventure. The district has this beautiful energy that keeps you on your toes. It’s an exhilarating energy that makes the workplace unpredictable and anything but mundane. I have spent my days attending rallies and going on hill visits to advocate on behalf of LSA, which was COMPLETELY outside of my comfort zone. Seriously, I felt completely out of my own element. However, looking back at my first few weeks at LSA, it’s evident […]

As I write this final blog post, I am bombarded by many feelings…the two most prominent being confusion and denial. I’m in a constant state of Wait, I’m sorry—what did you say the date is again? and No, that can’t be right…it’s still June, isn’t it? If summer mercilessly flew past you at full speed, and if you are shocked by the date on your calendar every morning, then you might be experiencing symptoms of End of Summer Whiplash. I have coined this condition with the hopes that it will help many of us place a name to the whirlwind of emotions we are feeling about the end of our summer as CAPS Fellows. We are nearing the end; what a strange thing to say. Just for the sake of recap, I am an intern at ArtMix, a nonprofit in Indy which provides access to the arts for people with […]

“Despacito! Play Despacito!” Repeats from around the 15-passenger van as ten 8-14 year old refugee youth call out for my fellow intern Wendy and I to play the smash hit from Louis Fonsi, Daddy Yankee, and Justin Bieber. “It’s the radio” we say with a laugh, “we can’t control what comes on, but if you wait long enough it will probably come back on again”. And thus begins, and usually ends, the day at Heartland Alliance’s Youth and Family Service’s Summer Program. Being an intern in Summer Program has provided me with a great experience to work with some incredible young people, and has been a thoroughly rewarding experience. First, a little about what Summer Program exactly is. Every day of the week in Summer Program takes us to a different location and provides a unique experience, all of which generally center around our program theme of “Good Neighbor”. Mondays, […]

Wow, I can’t believe it’s already my last week at Heartland and in the Chicago area. I’m purposely refraining from reading my first blog post so that I can read both side by side and see how much I’ve grown. Because yes, I truly feel like I’ve grown. I remembered being intimidated and even a little terrified my first few weeks: there were so many heavy tasks I was thrown into with little to no instruction, so many language and culture barriers, so many weights I didn’t feel strong enough not to get crushed under. But now, I feel completely transformed. I’m proud to say that I’ve developed the skill of communicating effectively with non-English speakers to a level in which I consider it one of my strengths. I feel comfortable coming into the office each day instead of a little apprehensive. Both the newer interns and the refugees come […]

One of the most exciting things about moving Chicago is being able to say that I live in Illinois!  It may only be temporary, but for someone who has spent the last 18 years of her life living in Valparaiso, IN (minus a semester in Costa Rica), spending two months in the big city is a pretty big deal.  One of my favorite parts about living in the city is listening to people speak in their many native tongues.  When I’m at the train station, I can hear a pair of students conversing in Arabic.  While I’m walking through Millennium Park, I can understand the parents talking to their children in Spanish.  When I walk down the street, I recognize one of the very few German words I know as a man talks on the phone.  During the time I spent at my internship over the last two months, I […]

I’ve been working at Water to Thrive for over a month now, and the time has flown by. My main project is a marketing plan that W2T can use to reach out to their Christian audience. Although W2T is a faith-based organization with roots in a Lutheran church, they don’t currently have any marketing strategies to reach one of their biggest donor bases – churches. That’s where I come in. Like with any project I’ve done for school, I started with research. This included looking up Christian publications, nearby churches, and best practices for nonprofit marketing. I also needed to know everything I could about Water to Thrive, an organization I had never heard of before I worked here. I also had to go through all their currently marketing, especially social media and print collateral to see how I could tweak it to appeal to a Christian audience. My favorite […]

The train hums me awake in the morning as it zooms under my window each day. It used to be something that jolted me awake, but now it is a part of my morning routine. In the always moving city, I have become used to the sounds, crowds, and lights. Each day as I head to work with my backpack, work shoes in hand, tennis shoes on, I am constantly surprised that in one of the largest cities, how many people I repeatably see each day, on the train and on the street.   The pace in the office of Ingenuity, like the city, is fast. Printers are printing. Meetings are in session. People are talking. I have worked at Ingenuity, the leading arts non-profit that works with getting quality arts education into every Chicago Public School for every student, for about four weeks now, as the Partnerships and Professional […]

Whenever a teacher or professor announced, “for this assignment, you’ll be working in groups,” I would internally (or at times, externally) groan and lament the impending onslaught of scheduling via 600 emails, navigating group dynamics, and inevitably picking up others’ slack. As an English major, I much preferred writing essays on my own time, in my own way, and with my own quality of work standards. However, my internship with Ingenuity this summer has turned group work on its head for me. I am part of the Data and Research team, and our projects are way too big for one person to tackle on their own. Even though we are only a team of three, we bring professional contractors, advisory panel members, and art education stakeholders to join in on our work. Our giant projects all of the sudden feel manageable as everyone in the room brings valuable insight and […]

  Greetings! My name is Katie Karstensen and this summer I have the opportunity to be working with ICDI, or the Interfaith Committee for Detained Immigrants. When people ask where ICDI is located it’s hard to give one central location because we are all over the Chicagoland area, and even outside of the state of Illinois in some of our ministries and work. To share what it has been like so far interning with ICDI and talking about all the different ministries we do, I thought it would be easiest to take you through my week and share some of the stories I have encountered. Mondays On Mondays you will find me near the South West suburbs of Chicago at our main office where our executive director, the two Sisters who have founded this organization, the fundraising team, and volunteers have their offices. I have done various tasks such as pull staples […]

By this time, I have just completed my third week of interning, and to say it has been a constant learning experience would be an understatement. This summer I am working at Ingenuity, an organization that not only raises awareness about the importance of a good quality arts education in the Chicago public schools, but also, it works to make sure that arts education stays in the schools and that everyone is benefiting from it from the research and data they collect from over 600 schools and 1,000 arts partners. Sounds simple enough, right? At Valparaiso University, I am a Criminology and Political Science double major (and a theatre minor, but most people forget about that when I tell them my majors).  When I told everyone I planned to spend my summer working at an arts education organization, many people were confused. I got a lot of interesting thoughts on […]

“My name is Aaron, and I work for a lobbying firm” I have always cringed when I heard that word. My teachers, parents, CNN and basically everyone had resolved to decry a whole profession as “unethical” and “corrupt.” Even now, as I rushed to tell family and friends about my new job in D.C., veiled smiles said “you’re one of them now.” Upon my arrival in our nation’s capital, I had resigned to embrace my new role: a puppet, ruled by special interest. Only Venn Strategies isn’t like that. There are no smoke-filled, back room meetings. The office isn’t filled with power-hungry D.C. elites or slaves to special interest. We don’t work to control government, we work to understand it. The federal government is an incredible complex machine with lots of moving parts. As a government affairs firm, our job at Venn is to keep tabs on what’s going on […]

Never underestimate the power that the nine-to-five work day can exert upon your daily routine; this is one of the many lessons that I have learned over the course of my first three weeks in Washington D.C., the place where politics meet reality.  It is a place where a small-town Midwesterner such as myself can easily fall victim to the overarching tones of rapidity and competitiveness.  It is a place where one can find that there exists a clash of understandings.  You see it everywhere; the Metro, the workplace, the restaurants, even the monuments.  From the outsiders’ perspective, there exists a great divide between how people engage with the world that we share. It starts as nuance, watching as some individuals rush down the left side of the escalator while others stand idly on the right, not daring to puncture the median threshold for fear of being rebuked by those […]