Becca Fine

Note from Madeline Moy: I work in the Brand Management and Advertising department at United Way of King County. This summer we’re lucky to have two high school interns: Becca Fine and Mahkayla Steele. Here’s a report from Becca on her first day as a United Way of King County intern. Her father is United Way CEO Jon Fine.

I’ve visited the United Way of King County innumerable times, but usually it’s because I simply need a ride home from Dad. Stepping into his office is not unlike stepping into my own home: free of pressure and armed with comfy couch to relax upon. Stepping into United Way today, however, was a different story. Today, the pressure was on me.

I began my volunteer position as Writing Intern for Brand Management today. I’d had an orientation a few weeks before, in which I met 49,208 people and remembered 4 of their names. I’d gotten somewhat of an idea as to what my position would entail, but the fact remained that all my work experience had been at Jamba Juice as opposed to an office building.

After biding my time for the 15 minutes I’d left early, I courageously marched into my boss Madeline Moy’s office. We shook hands like old friends before she launched into the 5 or so tasks I’d be starting right away. Among them: write an introductory paragraph about myself to be sent to United Way’s whole staff, read a certain section of the website, and send out several emails regarding various topics.

The website assignment particularly captivated my interest. It’s a page that briefly profiles a dozen or so United Way employees, asking questions like “Why did you choose to work at United Way?” What I found to be so interesting was the underlying message each staff member chose to impart: that at United Way, hard work equals community betterment. After reading through the page, I set to work on my real assignment: convincing more employees to let me interview them. It proved to be a surprisingly daunting task, as 2 out of the 15 people I emailed replied. And one of them was my father, so he had to.

My first day was laden with new information, which was both overwhelming yet rewarding. As I said in my introductory paragraph, it’s a testimony to my love of writing that I choose to spend my summer interning in an office. However, what I’m sacrificing pales in comparison to the hard work and energy I read about on United Way’s website today. Staff member Carol Van Noy said, “I come to work early, read hundreds of emails, answer phone calls, ask for support for United Way initiatives and programs, seize opportunities…leverage relationships and then I head home late feeling like I am making a difference in the world.” Her quote particularly inspired me, and I plan to do just that.

Stay tuned from more posts from Becca and hopefully some from our other intern, Mahkayla, as well!