Welcome back! If you’re reading
this, that means that I’ve completed my first week of the ProRanger internship
at Colonial National Historical Park (and learned how to get the Wifi running
on my laptop)! For those who may not know, Colonial is located a mere thirty
minutes north of Norfolk, Virginia. The park is situated in two of the most important
locations in United States history, colonial Yorktown and historic Jamestown. Over
the course of the summer, I will be engaging with multiple independent divisions
within the park, including administration, law enforcement, maintenance,
natural/cultural resources, and interpretation. Each division has its own proud
staff that I will be working with and after meeting many employees over the
first week, I can humbly say that I am immeasurably thankful for the
hospitality that they have shown me.
I was fortunate enough to land in
Yorktown a few days before my adventure within Colonial began, so I spent the
time exploring as a visitor and attempting to fit all that the park has to
offer within those few days. Believe it or not, you would need to spend a
number of days here at Colonial if you would like to truly experience and enjoy
all of the historical, cultural, and recreational activities that the park
offers. During these days, I also settled into my housing at the United States
Coast Guard Training Center, Yorktown. As you can see, I am living quite
comfortably in a suite intended for two that also offers a number of amenities like
a fridge/microwave, TV with media players, and a private bathroom/shower. I
have access to a number of facilities that house exercise equipment and a pool,
and even other places like a cyber café and a movie theater. In addition, I eat
at the dining hall directly across from my dorm.
Now that I familiarized myself with
the beautiful scenery and area within which I’ll be living, I could focus my
complete attention to my internship. I must say that I learned significantly
more than I was anticipating in only my first three days as a ProRanger.
Specifically, I have been working with law enforcement throughout both day- and
nightshifts so that I may experience what a typical encounter with the public
is like. A law enforcement officer I learner however, has a job that is far
from typical. Over a course of seventy-two hours, I learned a great amount of
information about law enforcement rangers. For example, I am learning how to
operate a radio between dispatch and other rangers, I have learned how to write
warnings and violations to drivers on the Parkway, and I’ve learned so much
about how a ranger stays prepared and ready on a daily basis.
As my weeks here continue, I am
confident that I will gain a clear understanding of what it means to not only
be a law-enforcement ranger, but also of how national parks operate as a whole.
Each division is so important to the prosperity of a park, and I cannot wait to
learn more about how I can contribute. Furthermore, I cannot wait to be able to
share my experiences with YOU! I appreciate your company with me thus far, and
I look forward to my upcoming blog with plenty more detail about my daily
activities. Thanks for reading!
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