the editor talks with you

Cole Stilwell is getting something few of us ever get. He’s working with us as an intern. That means he does a lot of things and gains a lot of experience. Is this what he wants to do with his life? Not really. He loves the outdoors, recently hiked to the top of Table Rock with his grandfather, Chuck McCurry, who writes our Church Buzz column, and wants one day to join the US Forestry Service. Meanwhile, an internship will let him polish his writing and technical skills. He may even change his mind about what he wants to do with his life. I did.

The only internship I ever applied for landed me a full-time job – with pay. I had worked at summer jobs since I was in my teens. I also delivered newspapers long before that. It was good experience. In the winter of 1959, I laboriously typed (on a typewriter, no less) letters to editors at 25 newspapers in the Carolinas and Georgia asking for a summer internship. I had worked on student newspapers and liked it. Maybe journalism would be my ticket to experience and life as a writer. I had no intention of spending the rest of my life working in journalism. What did I know? Life can be full of surprises. Cole may find a surprise or two himself.

Only one editor answered my letters. Dick Young, Jr. was a tall, lanky, legendary editor in Charlotte. His was the newspaper that produced Charles Kuralt, Marion Hargrove and other notable writers. He invited me to come for an interview, had me spend several hours taking tests and offered me a full-time job. I’m still in college, I told him. “Listen,” he said, leaning across the desk to look me in the eyes. “This is an opportunity that won’t come along often. “You can always go back to school. But the experience you will gain here will be better than anything you’ll learn in a stuffy old classroom. And I’ll pay you, too.”

Dick wasn’t anti-college. He was a UNC Tar Heel grad. And I don’t know what he saw in me but he was persuasive. Look what happened. I’m still working on newspapers, books and other projects I could not have imagined in 1959. Internships offer young people many benefits. They gain experience, a chance to try out a career and learn from veterans. We pay Cole – not a lot but enough to let him know that this is serious business.

The US Labor Department’s guidelines allow businesses to hire unpaid interns based on who benefits from the relationship. That’s simple, author and entrepreneur Andy Kessler wrote in the Wall Street Journal. Internships have more value to the intern than the company. “I’m not blind,” he wrote. “Many poor or disadvantaged students can’t afford to work for nothing. Companies should be sensitive to their economic issues and perhaps provide scholarships for their internship.” I’ll be the first to admit we and our readers have gained from Cole’s work. He posts breaking news online for us, handles our social media, files copies in our archive, vacuums the office and stuffs envelopes. Maybe he’ll be a part-time or full-time outdoorsman one day. That’s his decision.

Special offer for our readers

Jerry Bellune’s book, “Your Life’s Great Purpose,” shares inspiring stories with you. For autographed copies of his book for only $20, call Jewel or Katie at 359-7633.