Summer Internships, Pandemic Style

July 30th, 2020 |

Have you asked yourself “What is it like to intern during a pandemic?” Our seven summer interns can tell you what a remote internship with Historic Bethlehem Museums & Sites looks like. This year, summer interns were crucial in helping to reformat two large annual events, the Rooms to View Virtual Outdoor Room and Garden Tour in June and the Blueberry To Go Market in July. Additionally, interns jumped into researching the history of the Lehigh Valley for future exhibits and creating a mobile app for HBMS. Each one of our interns has gained insightful knowledge of how to evolve with even the most challenging circumstances that this year has brought us.

Meet our Interns:

Allison Schilling, Marketing & Social Media

“This summer I have been working on all things blueberry creating social media postings, designing posters to thank our sponsors, and writing email blasts for your favorite summer activity the Blueberry Festival! With the help of my leader, Carly, I helped shift our social media campaign from marketing a large-scale festival to the smaller Blueberry To Go Market to ensure community safety and continuing the tradition of turning tongues blue! I also helped with social media postings and email updates for the Rooms to View Virtual Outdoor Room and Garden Tour to promote the video series. I am very thankful for the internship opportunity at Historic Bethlehem Museums & Sites. I was able to gain experience and skills while surrounded by the beauty of Historic Bethlehem and many blueberry treats! Internships around the world have been cancelled due to Covid-19 and fortunately us interns at HBMS are able to continue to gain experience here, in the Lehigh Valley.”

Alex Cross, Exhibitions & Research

“Despite the challenges imposed by the pandemic, I have gained invaluable experience as I aspire towards a Master’s in History and eventually working at a museum. Among my many duties, I have answered research inquiries from the public, catalogued our collections, and conducted research for future exhibitions. In addition, I have written blog posts — topics have included George Washington’s visit to Sun Inn, the Moravian Apothecary, and William “Billy” Malthaner’s saloon. I have thoroughly enjoyed getting to know both the wonderful HBMS staff as well as the broader community of history lovers. Hopefully, I can continue to be a part of the organization in some capacity into the future.”

Emma Sonnenblick, Programming

“As the Historic Bethlehem Museums & Sites programming intern, I am busy writing the weekly Free Sundays at Home newsletter, brainstorming future HBMS program ideas, and working to make our brand-new Me & My Dollhouse Summer Camp come to fruition. Most recently, I collaborated with Maggi to create and prepare the free craft kits every child got at our Blueberry To Go Market. I would like to thank Alecia, my supervisor, for mentoring me and showing me the components of programming. I feel so fortunate to have had this opportunity and I look forward to using what I have learned in the future!”

Erin Meyer, Collections & Programming

“With the onset of the coronavirus, my work has shifted from onsite collections work to creating online collections and making them easily accessible from our supporters’ homes. The main platform I have been working with has been Smithsonian’s Learning Lab, in which Historic Bethlehem Museums & Sites has a profile and will soon have several collections uploaded containing resources like audio files, infographics, paintings, and photographs. One of my favorite collections to create has been the Apothecary Collection, which highlights our 1752 Apothecary. Building these collections has allowed me to explore all of HBMS’ sites, and I’ve been very inspired by the grounds of Burnside Plantation in particular. Volunteering at our annual Blueberry Festival and To Go Market at Burnside has been a real pleasure, especially exploring the beautiful Colonial Garden I had heard so much about. As a dessert enthusiast I have been more than happy to spend my afternoons surrounded by strudel, pie, and coffee cake.”

Hanna O’Connor, Digital Outreach

“Initially, I spent much of my time this summer doing pre-production for a podcast about unknown stories in the history of Bethlehem. Having a background in sound engineering and audio and video editing, I also worked on the Bag Lunch video series as well as a trailer for Rooms to View Virtual Outdoor Room and Garden Tour. By far, my biggest project for the summer has been preparing for the launch of Culture Connect mobile guide. I spent lots of time browsing through site photos, listening to audio recordings of our tour guide scripts, and acquainting myself with the Culture Connect software. Eventually, the mobile guide will offer tour experiences of the entire Heritage Trail. We prepared for the launch by creating just the Monocacy Valley Link, which prominently features Burnside Plantation and its buildings. Having to work completely remotely has been a different experience, but as a Moravian Academy alumna I’m glad that I’ve been able to be a part of Historic Bethlehem this summer.”

Maggi Reedel, Event Coordination

“This summer, I have the privilege of being the Event Coordination intern for Historic Bethlehem Museums & Sites. As such, I have been helping to modify the summer favorite Blueberry Festival into the Blueberry To Go Market, in true 2020 fashion. I submitted information for the week-long Market to virtual event calendars to help spread the word, as well as writing a post on our blog about the event. You may have seen me during our opening weekend at the Apple Orchard picnic area or helping around other spots around the Plantation. I also helped with preorder pick-ups during the week, bringing retail and blueberry baked goods to patron’s cars. Being involved in the Blueberry To Go Market has been really eye-opening, since I have never worked an event this large from behind the scenes and I was able to see and be a part of the moving parts.”

Sarah Heckman, Administrative & Retail Sales

“This summer I took on the role of Administrative and Retail Sales Intern for Historic Bethlehem Museums & Sites. With the new HBMS online store in full swing during the pandemic, my job was to create advertisements and promotional posts on social media platforms such as Facebook, Twitter and Instagram. As a current marketing student, this position has been a ton of fun for me since I am a huge fan of writing. Also, being able to learn more about the innerworkings of marketing and advertising has been especially interesting! Along with creating scheduled posts and promotional offers for the HBMS online store, I also create weekly e-blast emails to highlight handpicked items in the online store via Constant Contact. I love that I have been able to create content that has reached the eyes of many, and I especially enjoyed creating an e-flyer for local consignors to learn more about how they can feature their products in our locations such as the 1810 Goundie Market, the Schropp Dry Goods Shoppe, and the Moravian Museum. I have learned so many new skills throughout the course of this internship, and I am so grateful to have gained such valuable experience through this organization!”

We are thankful for all the hard work each of our Summer Interns contributed. Interested in gaining professional experience with Historic Bethlehem Museums & Sites? Learn more about our available internships and begin your application on our website.

Allison Schilling is the 2020 Marketing Intern for Historic Bethlehem Museums & Sites. She is a rising senior Marketing Student from Fox School of Business at Temple University.

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