Words can’t fully describe the feeling of entering the last week of my internship with COACH. It was truly bittersweet. On one hand, I felt incredibly proud of myself for not only earning this opportunity but also dedicating 100% of my energy to making the most out of it. On the other, it was hard to believe this chapter was coming to an end.

At the beginning, I honestly didn’t know what to expect. Retail was a completely new world to me, something I had never really pictured myself working in. But looking back, it turned out to be better than I ever could have imagined.

I’m beyond grateful for every single moment.

The Winner of the Contest

With a stunning upset, the first floor came in clutch and won in the end. I was told that someone bought about sixty backpacks, (which were worth the most amount of points) and swept the competition their way for floor number uno! This stunned every intern, especially when we all counted up the final tally. This was celebrated with cake for all the floors, but floor one got a trophy specifically engraved for their victory.

In the world of Claims

We had a rough week in the office, with our subrogation project taking longer than thought and our supervisor being out for a couple days it was hectic without our usual guide. But we had daily morning huddles with the Litigation team and that usually helped screw our heads on for the most part until our supervisor came back. We had more Subrogation and Depositions to sit in on and soak up for our experience. Being something new I was able to focus pretty well.

Intern meetings

With the project finished it was time to make our presentation. We present in two weeks time to the company we’ve been working at all summer. We each have a slide for our individual self, our department, and what role we played in the project. I will talk about the marketing and what went into the designs, the need to stay within the colors of the company and the addition of school like qualities. As well as the final number of donations raised. 1,489 items.

Litigation

During this week we said goodbye to the Catastrophe team and got introduced to the Litigation team. The leader of the team happened to be the father of one of the claims interns. So it was really interesting to see just how much of a family company this company is. We learned about Subrogation, Salvage, Large Loss, Liability, Mediation, and Deposition. I even got to sit in on some of the meetings for Mediation and Deposition, both were very interesting and I wish I could explain the details for them but I legally can’t. Which is always so cool.

Another Field Trip

Moving forward I had a field trip to a company called Foundation Risk Partners and met the interns there. None of them went to Stetson but all were very nice. We got a tour of their building, an understanding of what they do there, and took a photo with them. They then came to Security First and ate lunch with us, while our CEO and President did a presentation to them about our company and all we do.

Subrogation

Our new project for subrogation consisted of accessing the claim file and determine what kind of loss it was, who was at fault, and if subrogation was needed. It takes some time for each cell in excel but we should have enough time to finish it before the internship is done.

Internship Project

With the last of the donations done this week the floor winner will be announced soon.

The Long Week

This week was a long week, one that took a new definition to repetition. We did IA training all week long, and as an intern that meant taking notes for them rather than photos and videos. It was a chaotic week for me that has problems with stimulation. I found myself missing answers to questions and zoning out as the long lectures went on day after day. I got through it and eventually the end of the week came but it was not without it’s many struggles for me.

Intern Project update.

Other than that I had an alright week, on Monday I had free time so I worked a little more on my intern project and finished the marketing around the building for it. At this moment in time the forth floor was in the lead with the first floor being a close second.

Check in’s

During all this chaos I had a mental health check in with the HR representative that was also aiding us with the project and driving out intern meetings. I had to express the feelings and thoughts I had about the company and what I was doing there. I was not completely honest with her, because I had other things on my mind. Like will I have time to eat before the break is up and I have to take more notes? The usual stuff. Not much else can be said about this week except that it was very exhausting to me.

This week, my main goal was to tie up loose ends while still starting new tasks. We finished another episode and locked another edit. The video release agreement form was on our radars, as well as a 3D print of a phoenix and the upcoming magazine project.

Final Cut: Dr. Lua’s Episode

The big milestone was finishing Lua’s interview. Syncing the external mic track to the camera feed became a frame-by-frame process because of multiple cuts that were made in the video. Every time the sound felt subtly off, but once we aligned it, the whole piece tightened up. We have done the color correction, cut some of it, added the intro with outro, exported it, and called it done.

Interfaith Recording

Friday’s shoot was our smoothest yet. Dr. Lua hosted a conversation with Imam Rasheed, Rabbi Kay, and Dr. Hunter about faith, identity, and common ground. We double-checked mic levels, but one microphone turned off halfway through; we paused, re-asked the lost questions, and will put them accurately into the edit. Unfortunate, but fixable – and proof that we’re finally calm when the equipment misbehaves.

Release Forms

Before we finish the internship, we need signed waivers from every student guest. I put the release text into a Google Doc, filled it with names, and the speaker’s emails. Lua is handling the big names (Daryl, Jeff, Marc, Alan), while I’m tracking down everyone else. A little admin work now prevents legal issues later.

Uploading material

On Friday, I spent time uploading rendered podcasts, interviews, and project files into a neat folder structure for the fall interns. I believe it is a good practice to leave a tidy workplace behind.

Magazine

Next week we’ll hold the kickoff meeting for the January 2026 Phoenix Generation magazine and annual report – a project Mr. Marc has commissioned. Leveraging my layout and design experience, I’ll join the team. Together, we’ll brainstorm initial content and define everyone’s project roles.

Reflection

I really value the hands-on experience and growth this internship offered, from fixing audio and video problems to writing the scripts and taking photos. I’m also happy that I will keep working with Dr. Lua on future projects, building on what we have achieved so far.

I can’t believe I’m almost at the end of my internship! Even though it’s wrapping up, we’re still learning and doing so much.

This week, I made huge progress on my final project presentation. The slides are done (finally!), and now I’m fully focused on practicing what I’m going to say and making sure I feel confident. The presentation is on Tuesday, August 5. I’m soooo nervous, but also excited and prepared to do my best!

One of the highlights of the week was an amazing lunch with Coach’s District Manager, where we dove into the importance of HR in a company. He shared real stories from his career, reflecting on how things could’ve been handled differently and how HR played a key role in shaping those outcomes. What really stuck with me was his perspective that HR isn’t just about discipline, it’s a valuable resource for support, helping people navigate challenges with coworkers, customers, and managers. He also highlighted the resources Tapestry offers to make sure every employee feels heard and supported.

We even had a training session where we were presented with delicate HR scenarios and asked how we’d respond as leaders. I really liked this exercise, it reminded me that being a leader is, more than anything, about learning how to deal with people. There’s not always one right answer, and it’s crucial to stay empathetic and impartial.

Finally, we had a sneak peek call about the upcoming product launches and the strategies behind each one. While I can’t spill any details, I can say this: I’m OBSESSED. So many exciting things are on the way, and I’m in love with the direction the brand is heading.

It’s been interesting to realize just how deeply I’ve connected with Coach. Not just the product, but the people, the values, the mission. This experience has made me see that this is the kind of place I’d love to work long-term.

After last week’s intense round of edits and emails, week nine brought me right back to the studio twice. We started preparing the needed material for the next group of interns, recorded two more episodes, and had a field trip to Universal with all interns. It was a great way to keep the energy going.

Podcast Shoot – Agree / Disagree (Round 1)

Monday’s session was called “Agree/Disagree”. In this recording, multiple statements were given, and speakers had to either agree or disagree using our new original format: one finger meant strongly disagree, and five meant strongly agree. Prompts included “Money can buy happiness” and “It’s okay to pull the wings off a cockroach for fifty dollars”. We began with quick introductions and then let the debate flow, asking follow-up questions. The conversation and the recording process felt much smoother than in previous shoots, likely because we had become familiar with the camera angles and microphone settings.

Podcast Shoot – Agree / Disagree (Round 2)

On Wednesday, we introduced a new lineup of guests and made the statements more debatable. Here are some topics we have covered: social media age limits, mandatory uniforms, a limit on how much money one person can earn, a ban on subscriptions, and many more. We used the same finger scale, and the energy remained high throughout the entire recording.

Data Drop for the Next Crew

We also began creating the archive, which includes footage folders, audio stems, and prompt sheets. This way, the fall interns won’t have to deal with a confusing set of “final_FINAL_v3” files. It felt odd to prepare for a hand-off already, but organizing everything now will mean fewer problems for the next interns.

Universal Friday

Phoenix Gen surprised the intern team with a day at Universal. No cameras and no prompts – just roller coasters and conversations. It was a nice reset before diving back into edits.

Reflection

During week nine, we’ve reached a point where the technical details fade into the background, allowing the dialogue to take center stage. Handing off clean folders to the next team feels like proof we’ve picked up some knowledge about managing our workflow along the way.

My internship at Miller Electric company has come to a close. And what better way to finish it out than hopping back into the model I’ve been hard at work in for the last 4 weeks of this summer. Daisy chaining. That is the word of the week and a term used to describe what I had to model when weaving my way under and over structural beams. The runs, or “daisy chains,” were created by cutting the conduit into 4 sections in a section view, rotating the middle two sections of the run, and trim connecting them in 3d to form a smooth wave of conduit. Since the conduit encountered multiple cross sections with HVAC the technique described above was used on several occasions. I will say it became rather satisfying to repeat the process. Seeing how smooth a clash free run looked as it glided over the HVAC. I could not have had a successful internship without all the support of the talent team, my managers, and my fellow interns and VDC employees. Although my summer at Miller is coming to an end, my time at this company is not. I hope to continue to model in this job here and there during the school year, as long as it does not disrupt my studies and life as a student athlete. I am very grateful to have been an intern at such an amazing company.

3d view within Revit of the daisy chain

The daisy chain in Navis running over the HVAC