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Intern Profiles

Brandon Spencer-Hartle Meagan Baco Beth Dodrill Kristina Frost Elle Tabares Josh Mahar. Photo: Marissa Natkin Erwin Santiago
Lauren Perez Dwayne Meadows Marisa Gjurgevich Trevor Griffey Lynn Kim Megan Meulemans
Tristan Sechrest Justine Buller Kathleen Kemezis Reuben McKnight Ryan Kozie Lindsay Etheredge

 

Interns play a vital role in our service to the community. An intern is typically a college student or recent graduate who serves between 10-20 hours a week, often on a quarterly basis and may earn credit for their work. An internship provides practical experience for beginners in an occupation, profession or pursuit.

During the past several years we have been fortunate to have a number of individuals serve as interns. Below are their profiles and a description of what they accomplished.

Tristan Sechrest

Tristan SechrestTristan Sechrest
Luci J. Baker Johnson

Tristan Sechrest recently graduated from The Overlake School in Redmond, Washington. As part of the requirements for graduation, he was assigned to complete a "Senior Project." The project entails three weeks of work--May 16th through June 3rd--accumulating 90 hours. Tristan did a great job -focusing on how to engage high school and college students in historic preservation. He has a deep interest in history and in the fall will be a student at Yale University. Look for his story in the fall 2011 Historic Seattle newsletter.

Lauren Perez

Lauren PerezLauren Perez
Photo: Eugenia Woo

Lauren Perez joined Historic Seattle as an advocacy intern in the spring of 2011. She is working as our World's Fair intern assisting with preparations for the 50th Anniversary celebration of the 1962 Seattle World's Fair in 2012. She currently attends Columbia University where she is pursuing a dual MS/MS in Historic Preservation and Urban Planning. Her goal as a preservationist is to make sure the built environment reflects the diversity of our society. In 2006 she graduated, with honors, from the University Southern California with a double major in Print Journalism and History and a minor in Business. While at USC she ran public relations for HapaSC, the multicultural, multiracial student community. During her undergrad career she also wrote for the USC Daily Trojan. Previous preservation experience includes an internship for the Los Angeles Conservancy where she co-authored the Latino Civil Rights context statement for the City of LA. A Washington state native, Lauren has also worked for the Centralia Chroniclewhere she wrote the "Our Hometowns Photo Album" of greater Lewis County and Centralia College where she taught Upward Bound Journalism. Lauren is thrilled to be back in the Pacific Northwest this spring/summer and looks forward to her work in Seattle and learning more about local history and architecture.

Brandon Spencer-Hartle

Brandon Spencer-HartleBrandon Spencer-Hartle
Photo: Marissa Natkin

Brandon Spencer-Hartle joined Historic Seattle as an advocacy intern in the summer of 2010. Working closely with Director of Preservation Services Eugenia Woo during his six-week internship, Brandon revised and expanded the content of the advocacy section of the Historic Seattle website, contributed to efforts to preserve the Alki Homestead, explored the relationship between historic preservation and contemporary infill construction, and researched financial incentives for preservation. Brandon has been interested in both historic preservation and Seattle's built environment since middle school and considered Historic Seattle his "dream graduate school internship." Brandon holds a Community Development degree from Portland State University and is currently enrolled in the University of Oregon's graduate Historic Preservation Program. Following his expected graduation in 2011, Brandon would like to "model the inspirational work of Seattle's preservation community in finding solutions to rehabilitating and protecting historic resources across the Pacific Northwest."

Megan Meulemans

Megan Meulemans Megan Meulemans
Photo: Marissa Natkin

Megan came to Historic Seattle in the Fall of 2009 as a graduate student preservation intern to assist us in the preparation of a City of Seattle Landmark nomination for a residential property in West Seattle. She is in her second year at the University of Washington's Master of Science in Architecture, History and Theory of Architecture program. She is also pursuing a Certificate of Historic Preservation. Megan was our first choice as an intern because she possesses excellent research, writing, field work and photography skills. She was the perfect fit for the project and we feel very fortunate to have scored an intern of her caliber. Megan continues to assist Historic Seattle in completing the nomination and will help present it to the Landmarks Preservation Board in the near future. Megan is originally from Ladysmith, Wisconsin (a small town of less than 4,000 residents). She received her Bachelor of Science in Art History from the University of Wisconsin in Madison.

Josh Mahar

Josh Mahar. Photo: Marissa Natkin

Josh Mahar
Photo: Marissa Natkin

Josh Mahar recently graduated from the University of Washington with degrees in both History and Comparative Religion. A proud resident of the Capitol Hill neighborhood, Josh is an officer of the Capitol Hill Community Council and writes articles regularly on history and development for the Capitol Hill Seattle Blog. Before coming to Historic Seattle Josh interned with the community development group, Great City and volunteered with the Nature Consortium restoring the West Duwamish Greenbelt. At Historic Seattle Josh looks forward to learning valuable development strategies along with gaining a deeper understanding of Seattle history.

Lindsay Etheredge

Lindsay Etheredge. Photo: Marissa Natkin

Lindsay Etheredge
Photo: Marissa Natkin

Lindsay Etheredge graduated from the University of Puget Sound in 2009 with a degree in International Political Economy and two minors in Spanish and Latin American Studies. While in college, she also took Art History classes and has had a long-held interest in art and historic architecture. She has interned and volunteered with several non-profits including Washington Community Alliance for Self-Help, Medical Teams International, El Centro de la Raza and Witness for Peace, an organization located in Oaxaca, Mexico. As a summer intern with the Development department at Historic Seattle, she has learned about the many facets of fundraising for non-profits and hopes to put these experiences to use in a future job in the non-profit world. In her spare time, Lindsay enjoys rock climbing, hiking, dancing and travelling.

Kristina Frost

Kristina Frost, Photo: Marissa Natkin

Kristina Frost
Photo: Marissa Natkin

Kristina Frost joins the Development Team as a summer intern. Kristina is a native of Michigan where she will be finishing up her Bachelor of Arts degree at the University of Michigan. Her focus is in graphic design and product development with an emphasis on environmentalism. Kristina has also interned for National Geographic, the Association of Outdoor Recreation & Education, and the YMCA of Greater Seattle. Kristina was drawn to Historic Seattle because of her love of architecture, preservation, and cradle-to-cradle philosophy. Her pastimes include leadership development on the collegiate level, teaching outdoor living skills, and learning how to make her own outdoor equipment.

Justine Buller

Justine Buller / Photo: Luci J. Baker Johnson

Justine Buller
Photo: Luci J. Baker Johnson

Justine Buller moved to Seattle from Minneapolis, MN to do an internship at Historic Seattle. She first became interested in historical preservation through photography. A media arts student at the University of South Carolina, she began shooting images of old building and architectural details. The idea that something once thrived in these dying buildings was a continuing theme in her work. After graduating in 2006, she worked at a green consulting firm in Virginia. It was there she began to think about bringing the two ideas of historic preservation and green architecture together. While at Historic Seattle she is working with the Program Director and hopes to bring her passion for sustainable architecture and historic preservation into next years programs.

Erwin Santiago

Erwin Santiago
Photo: Marissa Natkin

Erwin C. Santiago joined Historic Seattle as a development intern in early April. As a development intern, he has been focusing his energies on a number of writing and research tasks as well as working on revamping the development section of the Historic Seattle website. He has worked with the online-marketing for the 35th Anniversary Year Gala and 1st Annual Preservation Awards, company profiles for the corporate members of the organization, drafting and editing of the 2008 Annual Report, and writing up letters and e-mailers as well as with data entry and updating the eTapestry database.Erwin graduated from Seattle University in December 2008 with a BA in Journalism, a BA in Humanities, and a Psychology minor. Having grown up in Seattle and a witness to the change happening with the growing metropolis, he has found a home with Historic Seattle to help preserve the legacy of Seattle.

Elle Tabares

Elle Tabares / Photo: Marissa Natkin

Elle Tabares
Photo: Marissa Natkin

Elle Tabares joined Historic Seattle as a development intern in Spring 2009 to assist with a variety of projects in Development. Elle is a senior at Seattle University majoring in strategic communications.

Kathleen Kemezis

Kathleen Kemezis
Photo: Marissa Natkin

Kathleen Kemezis joined Historic Seattle as an Advocacy volunteer after moving from Pittsburgh with her husband. In Advocacy, she has been studying, sorting, and cataloguing literature related to historic preservation incentives, preservation policy and law, and Seattle history in an electronic library of her design. Kathleen has also joined projects in Development, and she is most excited about a project to encourage younger "Preservationists" to join the Historic Seattle organization. Since graduating with an AB in Classical Archaeology from Bryn Mawr College, Kathleen has worked for the Museum of Cycladic Art in Athens as well as the Frick Art and Historical Center and Pittsburgh History and Landmarks Foundation.

Marisa Gjurgevich

Marisa Gjurgevich
Photo: Marisss Natkin

Marisa Gjurgevich, a development intern, began work with Historic Seattle at the beginning of November, 2008. Marisa has been focusing her energies on a number of writing and research oriented tasks, including, but not limited to the implementation of new marketing initiatives. Marisa graduated from Pennsylvania State University in May 2008 with a BA in Comparative Literature and International Studies. She spent time in Panama City, Panama researching plans for architectural redevelopment and also studied in Santiago, Chile. Marisa is originally from Oregon and has recently moved to Seattle.

Ryan Kozie

Ryan Kozie
Photo: Marisss Natkin

We are excited to have two summer interns join our team this spring: Ryan Kozie (son of members Dan & Emily Kozie) and Meagan Baco. Ryan's internship this summer has him working on the Northwest Resource Center for Preservation, a new project in the Dearborn House with the goal of expanding knowledge about preservation. The Northwest Resource Center is just getting off the ground, and Ryan's role is to assess, catalogue and organize Historic Seattle's holdings. The collection includes books, photographs, architectural plans, posters, landmark nominations, and lots of other interesting stuff. Ryan is a Seattle native, currently living in West Seattle. He graduated from the University of Washington with a B.A. in English and Art History, and will return to UW in the fall to begin a master's program in Library and Information Science. He hopes to work as a librarian in a museum.

Meagan Baco

Dan Lees,Chair, Arts & Crafts Guild

Meagan Baco
Photo: Marisss Natkin

After a cross-country expedition from Charleston, SC, Meagan became an intern at Historic Seattle in June. Her work here concerns preservation easements; one of our most effective tools for protecting a building’s significant exterior characteristics. She has researched over two dozen properties, surveyed their condition and is now creating documents and procedures to advance our easement program. Meagan will graduate with a Masters of Science in Historic Preservation from a joint program by Clemson University and College of Charleston in 2009. Her educational focus is urban preservation, specifically main street revitalization, alternative zoning methods and thoughtful transportation planning. Previously, she graduated with honors from SUNY Buffalo’s School of Architecture and Planning with a B. A. in Environmental Design.

Trevor Griffey

Trevor Griffey

Trevor Griffey
Photo courtesy: Trevor Griffey

Trevor Griffey was a graduate intern at Historic Seattle and a contributing writer for Preservation Seattle. Since the fall of 2002, Trevor has been a graduate student in American history at the University of Washington, on a joint fellowship between the Harry Bridges Center for Labor Studies and the Center for the Study of the Pacific Northwest. His research focus is on social welfare issues and urban politics.

From 2001-2002, Trevor was a freelance political reporter and contributing writer for the Seattle Weekly, ColorsNW magazine, the South Seattle Star, and Real Change. His writing for ColorsNW magazine in 2002 earned him two awards from the Western Washington Chapter of the Society of Professional Journalists, including first place in magazine arts coverage and third place for magazine environmental reporting. He received his BA in 1997 from Wesleyan University in Middletown, Connecticut, and moved back to Seattle in the summer of 1998.

Reuben McKnight

Reuben McKnight

Reuben McKnight
Photo: Marissa Natkin

Reuben McKnight is the Historic Preservation Officer for the City of Tacoma, Washington. Previously he was a writer and graduate intern for Historic Seattle (2002-2003) and also served as Acting Pioneer Square Board Coordinator for the City of Seattle. In his pre-cubicle life, Reuben was an archaeologist supervisor and field technician for commercial projects in Washington, Oregon and Idaho.

Reuben has a degree in Anthropology/Archaeology from Western Washington University, and a Master of Urban Planning (Preservation Planning) from the University of Washington. He currently sits on the board of the Washington Trust for Historic Preservation and has also served a term on the Seattle Landmarks Preservation Board. A lifelong Seattleite, Reuben lives with his wife and daughter in historic Columbia City.

Beth Dodrill

Beth Dodrill

Beth Dodrill
Photo: Marissa Natkin

Beth Dodrill was a graduate intern at Historic Seattle in 2003 when she conducted research and provided support for landscape projects and website content. She completed her MLA and Preservation Planning Certificate programs at the University of Washington in 2003. She currently practices as an independent preservation consultant and landscape designer. She also serves as a docent and member of the Garden Conservation Committee and Trustee for the Dunn Gardens Historic Trust and is Research Committee Chair for DoCoMoMo-WeWa, a preservation advocacy group focusing on mid-century modernism. Beth grew up in Louisville, KY where she earned a BA in English at the University of Louisville. Her interests in cultural landscapes and the built environment grew from her awareness of how Louisville's historic architecture and Olmsted park system significantly contributed to the city's unique character and her own personal “sense of place.” She has lived in Seattle since 1998. Her preservation work has included working on numerous architectural surveys, EIS and SEPA review projects and City of Seattle landmark nominations. She also conducted the cultural resources review for the South Downtown Planning Study in 2007.

Dwayne Meadows

Dwayne Meadows

Dwayne Meadows
Photo: Marissa Natkin

Dwayne Meadows was a graduate intern at Historic Seattle in the summer of 2004 and is a current student at the University of Wyoming working towards a Masters in American Studies. His focus is Cultural Landscape Interpretation and Preservation. He grew up in the small logging and ranching community of Saratoga, Wyoming on the Upper North Platte River. Past preservation work has including restoring CCC wilderness cabins at Misty Fjords National Monument, and homes in Wyoming, Colorado, Michigan and Bainbridge Island. Recent research and writing projects include a National Register nomination for Sunrise Iron Mine and Company Town in Wyoming, a National Register nomination for a historic railroad district in Sheridan, Wyoming, researching threats to Heart Mountain Relocation Center near Cody, WY, and surveying historic barns for the National Trust Barn Again! Project.

Dwayne has a BA in English Literature from the University of Wyoming.

 

 

 

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