Erie Internship

January 24th, Post #1

This semester I am participating in an internship that is pushing me out of my warm little nest I've built in Porter Hall and into the real world. I am excited and nervous in the best of ways. I have a great support system that is helping me along and I'm ready to embark! Off we go!

In his retirement, Mr. Robert Dorris of Erie, Kansas created life size dinosaur sculptures in his backyard. They are composed of old machine parts and vary in size from a few inches to 30 feet in length! After Robert's passing, the Dorris family has chosen to donate the wonderful sculptures to the town of Erie.

 
 This is where I come in! I was commissioned by the town to design some additional pieces to go along with the Dinosaur Park. I had the pleasure of visiting the town last weekend and meeting with the committee, headed by the patient and kind Kathy Brennon. They have given me the freedom to choose what sort of additions I will be contributing. The initial idea was to create some small playground equipment that would be located in the city park across the street. Other ideas were to design some benches that would go in the dinosaur park itself. Meeting with these caring individuals was very reassuring; the confidence that they have in me is wonderful.

Right now we're in the early stages of development- dealing with the less exciting things such as a budget, legal documents, liability, materials etc. However time seems to always move so quickly around here and I am beginning to work on some preliminary sketches for the equipment. More updates to follow!