My Internship Abroad with LIKECHARITY

I have been interning at LIKECHARITY for the past 3 months, and my last day is today.  As an American, I felt like it is my national civic duty to write a post about myself (and my time here).

It has been a delight to work with LIKECHARITY.  Though most people only know of us through our 30-second DRTV adverts, there is so much that needs to get done to help charities reach their audiences.  Our office is a constant combination of creativity and proven results, where no idea is too big.

I arrived in September and the first blog post I wrote focused on the issues of homelessness throughout the country.  I have been able to see firsthand the effects of the housing crisis and of homeless rates.  I will be leaving the country before this issue is fixed, but I hope that strides forward can be made before the coldest winter months.  

The good news is that there are hundreds of charities in Ireland, and I have had the pleasure of working with many of them over the past 12 weeks.  There are several charities that support the homeless not only by supporting those in need but also by campaigning to change policy to prevent more people from losing their homes.  Society of St. Vincent de Paul, Focus Ireland and Merchant’s Quay Ireland to name a few.    

It was an awesome opportunity to work for a start-up company, and I really grew very fond of the environment.  It’s a small but open office, and each team member wears many hats, and adaptability is key when working on different projects.  I did many things at LIKECHARITY, some that I expected, and some that I did not, this added to the experience.

One of the best lessons I’ve learned at LC is the value of collaboration.  Though my colleagues all may have different job titles, we all share the same goals for the company.  If one team member is working on a project, almost always he or she will for creative input from the rest of us in the office. The company understands that we all have different perspectives and they are all valuable to the work we do.  

Ireland has been a great place to spend the last three months.  It’s an extremely welcoming country with wonderful people.  Even though I will never truly be able to understand Irish sarcasm, thank you Ireland, for your hospitality!