Our office interns this fall, Mari Houck (left) and Sam Sunderland, during a volunteer appreciation event the Governor’s Mansion. (Photo courtesy of Benjamin Helle) 

Ahh, the hectic life of a new intern at the Secretary of State office – quite a title for me and Samantha Sunderland.

The two of us have spent the past few weeks settling into our new positions and sharing a cubicle while meeting state leaders and employees, embarking on tours of the office’s various divisions and getting to know our way around the Legislative Building where we work.

First, a little about ourselves.

Sam  is a Washington native and current student at Western Washington University, majoring in journalism. Her work as the Communications intern includes writing many blog posts you can find right here at our office’s “From Our Corner” blog. Sam also keeps the office staff up to date on local and statewide news by sending out electronic news clips every day.

My name is Mari Houck and I wandered over from the other side of the country after graduating from the University of Vermont. I have been spending my days working alongside the Combined Fund Drive staff by volunteering, contacting our charities and donors, and making preparations for our second annual Masquerade Ball, on Oct.26.

Mari holds up “Seabiscuit” during her visit to the Washington Talking Book & Braille Library in Seattle. (Photo courtesy of Adam Noble) 

But it’s not all work and no play for us interns! When we’re not at our desks, we can be spotted visiting various branches of the office, including the State Archives, State Library, Corporations and Charities, Elections and most recently, the Washington Talking Book & Braille Library in Seattle. Our recent day trip to Seattle for this special visit consisted of running a few errands and getting a tour of this wonderful resource for the blind and those with impaired vision. WTBBL ships out approximately 1,500 audio books every day across the state and currently has 30,000 books available on its website for downloading and listening! With over 400 volunteers, this library is among the most successful in the U.S. and is such a wonderful resource for those with vision deficiencies.

We’ve talked with Secretary of State Wyman several times, and we appreciate her interest in our internships and ensuring that it’s a good experience for us.

Aside from cleaning up pond-sized coffee spills and licking endless envelopes till our tongues turn into cardboard, things have been going pretty well for Sam and me so far, and we are looking forward to more fun and interesting experiences before our internships end in December!  The pay is lousy (zero), but the job is fascinating, and we recommend it for anyone wanting a front-row seat in state government.