Kate Jackson from Mountain View and Braden Burns from Kingfisher spent the past 12 weeks serving Oklahoma's pork producers as valued members of the Oklahoma Pork Council staff.
Mid-August closed a helpful and fun chapter for the Oklahoma Pork Council as our 2023 summer interns completed their experiences. They are both headed back to Oklahoma State University (OSU) where they will continue working toward their bachelor degrees in agriculture.
Kate Jackson, who served as Oklahoma Pork's communications intern this summer, will graduate in May with her Agricultural Communications degree. Kate was extremely helpful on a variety of projects, including: photography, award video development, show pig student education, and event planning. Kate shared her biggest takeaways were how important Oklahoma Pork's service is to the success of our producers, how rewarding it is to be on a supportive and successful team, and how significant the role of pork production is to the state of Oklahoma.
As a thank you to our board and members, Kate wanted to share this message: “I had the most wonderful internship experience ever! I am beyond thankful to have worked with the Oklahoma Pork Council this summer. My passion for pork continues to grow by the wonderful people I have met in this industry.”
Braden Burns, who served as Oklahoma Pork's outreach intern this summer, begins his junior year at OSU next week where he studies Agribusiness. Braden contributed to many successful projects the past 12 weeks, including: managing community donation requests, preparing for the Oklahoma Pork Congress, and leading several interactive events for 4-H and FFA audiences. Braden said his most important takeaways of the summer were better understanding how our state's pork industry works throughout the supply chain, seeing the true value of agricultural producer organizations, and expanding his network of agricultural role models and resources.
When asked what he would like to share with our board and members on his last day, Braden said: "This was an amazing summer becoming engulfed in all things pork! I have never been so proud to be from Oklahoma and get to be a small part in a great industry that reaches people across the world!"
To both these talented students, we share a heartfelt thank you for their hard work! We are proud of their service and their professional growth in three short months. Our team will miss having Braden and Kate with us every day, but we look forward to future opportunities to work with them both as they continue their successful agricultural career paths!