My Day as Finz

Today I got an opportunity to make a local elementary school appearance as Finz, the Worcester Sharks mascot. The event was for the team's initiative Reading is Cool! I helped hand out certificates and tickets to the students who read the most books since January. The overall winner was a first grader who read 1,700+ books. I asked the principle and she agreed there was no way in the world the kid read that many books, but the parents signed off on it so you cannot challenge the number. The teachers were part of the initiative too, they set a school goal of 20,000 books and if the students reached that number they would do crazy things to their hair. The principle looked like Cloud Strife from Final Fantasy VII. Another teacher created a bell using her hair it was very impressive.

Playing the part of a mascot is really fun, you get to give high fives to the little kids and then play around with them and they all want to meet you. Since you are hidden in many ways it is easier to dance around like a jackass and entertain the audience. The only issue is the mascots head. I wear glasses and half way through the appearance my glasses were sitting on the edge of my nose. I just wanted to rip off the Finz head and take off the glasses. The view from the head also leaves a lot to desire. You cannot see your own feet, which for me a size 13, that is hard to do.

Interview with Sydney Blue Sox

Tonight I had an interview with Matt Cooper of the Sydney Blue Sox. The job I am interviewing for is a Public Relations and Media volunteer position with the team during the 2013-14 season. The thought of moving to Australia even for eight months is scary, but in a good way. With my career change one of my goals is to go outside my comfort zone. Living in Philadelphia for three months went well and Australia would be very similar, but the people would have cooler accents. I would learn a lot while working in the Australian Baseball League (ABL) since they use many of the same systems as Major League Baseball (MLB). Since MLB owns 75% of the ABL I would gain some great contacts with both leagues.

First Game with New England Revolution

Today I got my first chance to work a game with the New England Revolution. Our in-game responsibilities were pretty easy. I distributed lineups to the TV trucks, stats to the officials, and did post game interviews with Scott Caldwell, Chad Barrett, and Matt Reis. The game will be easy to remember due to the wind. The Revs recorded their first shot of the game in the 77th minute due to the win causing havoc on all passes. Overall it was an uneventful, but enjoyable experience. The Revolution tied Sporting Kansas City 0-0. New England now has four points in their first three games of the season, which is better than most people were predicting.

When it comes to the Revolution I have now met a few players and all of them have been nice and easy to work with during my internship. The No. 1 overall pick in the MLS SuperDraft, Andrew Farrell, has been especially fun to work with in Foxborough. He has an exceptional attitude every time someone asks him about a game the first word out of his mouth is fun. It is great to hear a professional athlete talking about how fun it is to be an athlete.

Surprise Opportunity

Today I got an email from the Worcester Sharks, an AHL affiliate of the San Jose Sharks, saying I have received an internship with them.  While I had applied to a communications internship a few months ago, I had interviewed earlier in the month about an Event Operations internship, but I had never heard word back from them.  I guess I will be working two internships this semester after all.

Last Day with the Philadelphia Union

My last day with the Union was also the night of the Holiday Party.  During the holiday party I got to MC the trivia competition, which was fun, but note to any future employers do not give someone a mic on their last day on the job, you never know what they will say.

Upon returning to my hotel after all my goodbyes I sent this letter to Leah Moore to send to the organization.


To the Union,

Some of you might know me as the as one of the interns in the annex, others as intern #2, others as they guy who sends you that Daily Clips email you delete daily, but most of you know me as the intern who played quiz master at this year’s holiday party.

The life of an intern is never easy, the days are long, you’re unsure of your abilities and the pay is well…  Then again the rewards of being an intern are priceless.  This time last year I decided to quit my career in accounting and finally follow the dreams of my inner 10 year old.  I joined the Union a 32 year old still trying to figure out what I wanted to do in my life.  I now leave a 33 year old with a much clearer path.

I cannot thank all of you enough for the opportunity to serve as one of your communications intern for the past three months.  I will never forget the experience as well as the kindness shown to me by each and every one of you whom I worked with in Chester.  The Union has built something special from the ground up and you all should be proud of what you have built.

To my fellow interns, your time with the Union is special.  The connections we make here can lead to long term friendships as well as future employment.  Make sure you take advantage of this opportunity.  Learn from everyone you can, do not be afraid to ask anyone a question about your goals.  It never hurts to ask.  It was a pleasure meeting all of you during our weekly meetings and seeing your ideas during your presentations.  Leah has done a great job in running the internship program and making us all feel like family, which was big for this homesick boy from Boston.

I move on to my next internship with the New England Revolution, but the Union will also have a place in my heart.  It will be a sad day when I retire my Union hat to my career hat rack.

“Saying goodbye, why is it sad?  Makes us remember the good times we’ve had.”

Thank you,

-Luke

Decision Made

After weighing both internship offers from the New England Revolution and the Boston Breakers I have made my choice.  I am going to be taking the internship with the Revolution.  Since I am already 10 years behind in my new career I need to use these internships to gain experience, but also to gain connections.  At both internships I would learn a lot, but the connections I could make working for the Revolution would be much better for my career.  Since the team is part of the Kraft Sports Group, which also owns the New England Patriots, I would be meeting people in many different areas of professional sports.  Also I have really enjoyed working in the MLS and would love to see how another team runs their communications department.

Tough Decisions

Today I got an offer from the New England Revolution to become a Communications Intern for the Spring semester.  The problem is I have already told the Boston Breakers I would be a Communications Intern for them during the same time.  When I originally interviewed with the Revolution I thought I would be able to do both since they were both part-time.  The problem is the Revolution will not allow me to intern with a team that is in the same sport and market, this means I need to make a choice between the two teams.