Variety

July 21, 2014 Posted by: S Martin

Last week marked 3 weeks that the interns have been a part of the George Perkins Marsh Internship at Marsh-Billings-Rockefeller NHP and it was probably the busiest week yet. On Monday the interns worked with the interpretive division, roving the trails, manning the booth on the green and the Billings Farm desk, as well as being a mansion steward. The day went by pretty smooth, as the interns are familiar with these stations and have a good understanding of how the park operates on the front lines.                

On Tuesday, the interns had a free day and so they worked in the conference room to start gathering ideas for the youth summit on August 7th! It is not even a month away, yet, the interns created an amazing outline of how they would like the summit to go. They focused on the theme of Marsh's book, Man and Nature, and want to do a birthday party theme to commemorate the 150th anniversary of the novel. They also took some time on Tuesday to get out in the resource and work on the video project which they plan on premiering at the summit.                

The next few days were jam packed, and the interns were not at MABI much. Wednesday, they had the opportunity to work with Lelia Mellen, or the Rivers and Trails Conservation Assistance Program and a crew of about 12 high school girls from the Upper Valley Trails Alliance in Lebanon, New Hampshire. Here the interns and I worked right alongside this crew to pull up old rail road ties, so that the railroad can be converted into a trail for recreational purposes. The ties weighed up to150 pounds so everyone worked together to get them on the bed of a truck. Other tasks include using crow bars and other equipment to pull the steaks and metal plates off of the ties. What was really cool is the smaller nails had the dates of when they were put in, so all the interns have nails that date back to 1920.We finished the day a little early and decided to head to Marissa's house and relax by the pool. It was well deserved.               

Thursday and Friday were spent on the opposite side of the Connecticut River at Saint-Gaudens National Historical Site. Here, the interns met with Henry Duffy of curatorial and were able to work with them to clean the bronze statues using mineral spirits, soapy water, and wax. The interns also got the chance to meet the park Superintendent, Rick Kendall, and with facilities manager, Steve Walasewicz.This park provided a unique perspective, as the interns have only been able to work in one National Park so far. They were able to uncover the differences between the two parks themes and how the divisions operate. I would have to say, it was a wonderful week.