Boys & Girls Club of Kalamazoo, Lake Street: Summer Residential Camp Counseling & Nonprofit Organization Accounting

Abstract

My Senior Individualized Project will be about this past summer in which I worked at the Boys & Girls Club located on Lake Street in Kalamazoo. At the beginning of the school year I was determined to find an internship at some business or corporation so that I would have a better idea of what I wanted to pursue as a career after graduation. As an economics and business major I thought that having experience in a field such as accounting, investments, or insurance sales at a well-known corporation was the best option for me. Unfortunately, each of the internships and extemships which I applied and interviewed for did not work out, and I was forced to entertain other options. I was so caught up in trying to find the perfect business-world experience for myself that I failed to consider an opportunity which turned out to be very applicable to my future as well as extremely rewarding. One of the profound ways in which my life has changed since coming to Kalamazoo College is my awareness to the many issues and problems that are present in our country and the rest of the world. My education here has taught me that it is important to be conscious about what is happening across the globe as well as in your own community, and to be open-minded to different cultures, places, and people. Largely because of this fact, I really wanted to get involved in some line of work where I could have a positive impact on people who needed help. After I began to open my eyes to some of the tragedies and injustices of the world we live in, the next step to me meant taking some kind of action and making a difference. For this reason I am so grateful I decided to apply and work for the Boys & Girls Club this past summer. It occurred to me that there were things more important than finding that "perfect" internship at Prudential or Bank of America, and that this was an opportunity I could not pass up.