eastern Oregon « OSU Extension Internship Program

Hi my name is Heidi Moran! This will be my second summer as an Oregon State University Extension intern in Union County. I just finished my second year at Eastern Oregon University where I am majoring in elementary education. I was involved in 4-H for 9 years and last summer I really enjoyed having a larger role in 4-H events around Union County. So far this summer I have helped at Eastern Oregon Livestock Show, Tri County 4-H Camp, and our Iron Chef Cooking Class. I really enjoyed working and helping at these events which I had participated in for many years while I was in 4-H.

Heidi Moran serving lunch at Tri-County 4-H Camp. Photo: Katie Hauser

At the beginning of my internship, I was able to work out at Eastern Oregon Livestock Show in Union, OR. I was able to help with some of the livestock shows, answer questions, and help with awards. It was a great way to start off my summer internship.

A highlight so far from the summer was helping with Tri-County 4-H Camp. I was able to help prepare for the camp by organizing camp supplies, make cabin boxes, and counselor binders. At 4-H Camp I taught an ice cream making class, popped popcorn for the movie night, and helped where needed during the camp. 4-H Camp was something I always looked forward to each summer when I was younger and I enjoyed having a larger role this year.

This has already been a great summer and I am excited to see what the rest of the summer has in store for me

Hello Everyone,

My name is Tayleur Baker, and I am a sophomore at Oregon State University studying speech communication with a minor in agriculture sciences. My passion for the agriculture industry sprouted through my various experiences throughout my childhood. To start, I grew up in Harney County, right outside of Burns, and I fell in love with the agriculture industry on my family’s fifth generation cattle ranch. Later, I began showing livestock and became involved in my local 4-H and FFA programs. At the beginning of my senior year of high school, I encountered an experience of a lifetime, and traveled to Washington D.C. to speak with senators and representatives, which captivated my attention and interest, and opened the door of agriculture communications to me. In the future, post-graduation, I hope to continue in agriculture communication and become an advocate for the industry.

4-H day campers learning with Legos. Photos: Tayleur Baker

This is my second-year interning with Oregon State University Extension Services and I’m loving it. Last year, I served within the OSU Extension office in Harney County as an office intern, and this year, I’m working within the newly created title of being the remote Eastern Oregon multimedia communications intern. Unlike last year, instead of serving within the same county for the whole year, I travel to various different Eastern Oregon counties to assist with providing media coverage. My goal throughout this internship is to be able to serve Eastern Oregon and tell the story along the way. I feel that Eastern Oregon often gets overlooked as nowhere land to pass through, but there is so much more to it than meets the eye. This summer, I am ecstatic to receive the opportunity to prove just that.

Throughout my internship thus far, I have worked on professional development, videography for OSU Extension, and I attended a day camp within Sherman County. In the weeks ahead, I hope to continue with this work and attend more events, gather stories from more counties, and showcase the role of OSU Extension in Eastern Oregon. Upon the closing of my internship, I hope to have substantial media to produce a video about Eastern Oregon and the amazing work currently being done there. I look forward to becoming an advocate and resource throughout this summer’s internship experience while growing professionally as well.

Have a great summer!

Respectfully,

Tayleur Baker

Maggie Justice is an intern in the OSU Extension office in Grant County.

One of the first jobs that I was given when I started working in the Grant County Extension office was looking through old records for a community member who is writing a book. At the time, the task seemed a little daunting, especially because these reports spanned 30 years. But at the same time, I was excited because I knew there were treasures hiding in the old boxes and books. For many people, this would have been the most boring task in the world, but to me, it was one of the coolest things I have gotten to do.

Unknown child with his market lamb at the Grant County Fair circa 1950s. Photo from the Grant County Extension archives.

I grew up living with my great-grandmother, who was about 90 years older than me. From her, I was privileged enough to understand that history is not just dates and events, it is the lives and stories of the people from the past. Her experiences from her past taught me to love history, family, and homemade fudge. Nothing excites me more than looking through the scraps of different people’s life, and to see how different it is from mine.

Grant County Extension ag and 4-H agent Bill Farrell examining soil at a Grant County ranch. Photo from the Grant County Extension office archives.

As I looked further into the old Extension reports and photographs, I was surprised to see that at its essence, nothing had really changed. There were still kids competing in livestock and static events, Extension agents working hard to help their community, heck, even the same willow tree was in front of the fairgrounds. Everything was familiar, but at the same time very different. I grew excited when I started recognizing names from people that I had known my entire life. One of the more exciting photos that I stumbled upon was one of my mother and uncle. Though it was a little funny to think of all these people as 4-H’ers, it made so much more sense about why they wanted to help me as much as they did when I was growing up.

My mom and uncle Donald, showing lambs in the early 1980s. Photo from Grant County Extension office archives.

Looking through the old photographs allowed me to have a clearer image of what Extension does for its communities, because they showed that from the beginning, Extension is helping. I have seen all the hard work that the Grant County office has put into this summer’s modified youth static and livestock exhibits, and I know that they are trying to really make a difference in our community. It’s not an easy task, but every year, they make it look easy, and make it a beloved event for everyone in the community.

OSU Extension Internship Program

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