My Time as an Intern by Mahika Vedire

My Time as an Intern

By Mahika Vedire

 

 

My name is Mahika Vedire and I am a Sophomore at the University of Maryland College Park, majoring in Public Health Science and part of the Global Public Health Scholars Program. Today, I am excited to share my experiences from my time interning at There Goes My Hero (TGMH), a position I was fortunate to secure through the Do Good Institute at UMD and their Impact Intern Program.  

From the moment I started at Hero, I was welcomed with an incredible amount of support and kindness. The close work environment and being able to work with Community Outreach and Volunteer Coordinators, Olivia Lewis and Andrea Hernandez, made me feel at home, eager to work, and supported. Before this internship, my understanding of blood cancer and the vital work of nonprofits like TGMH was limited. My initial exposure to the field was eye-opening and has significantly expanded my knowledge and perspective. 

Executive Director, Mary Kaye DiUbaldo, encouraged me to ask any questions I had about blood cancer, emphasizing that it was a complex topic. As expected, she was completely right, and I had countless questions. Over the past 3 months, my knowledge about blood cancer has increased significantly. I’ve become familiar with the procedures involved in swabbing potential donors and adding them to the registry. This process is critical for finding suitable matches for patients in need of bone marrow or stem cell transplants. I’ve grasped how each step, from the initial swabbing to the data entry and follow-up, contributes to saving lives. 

Working at bone marrow donor registry drives has been such an insightful opportunity. I got to work my first drive at the Bourbon Tasting Event at Capital Grille back in June. While it was a hectic and fast paced environment, it was a great drive to learn how the process works and how to effectively engage with potential donors. I learned the importance of clear communication and the impact of providing accurate information about the donation process. My second drive was at the Run up to Juneteenth 5k hosted by the SEED School of Maryland which was a part of TGMH’s Color the Registry Initiative. This was a very different event as it was a chance to connect with the community and talk to people of color the importance of joining the registry. Each interaction was an opportunity to educate and inspire others, making the role both challenging and rewarding. 

Another great experience interning at Hero has given me, was being able to serve meals to cancer patients and their caregivers at the Hackerman-Patz Patient and Family Pavilion in May and July. This opportunity allowed me to contribute in meaningful ways by serving meals, creating cards of encouragement, and assembling care bags for patients and their families. The patients and their families staying at Hackerman-Patz face significant challenges and being able to offer even a small measure of comfort through meals and thoughtful gestures felt incredibly rewarding. 

Along with these great volunteering moments, my time at Hero has been enriched by the invaluable skills I developed under the mentorship of Olivia and Andrea. I had the opportunity to create engaging social media content for our Instagram, Facebook, and LinkedIn accounts along with learning how to use Meta Business Suite. I also became proficient in WordPress where I worked on updating and reformatting the TGMH website. My role extended to navigating Salsa CRM and Humanitru, which were essential for producing content for our newsletters and blog posts. Lastly, I assisted with solicitating different businesses and organizations to host events/ bone marrow registry drives and for in-kind donations for the silent auction at the Bob Bell Golf Tournament. 

I am so grateful for the opportunities and the knowledge interning at There Goes My Hero has given me. I can’t wait to take these skills with me to the next 3 years of my time at UMD and into the future.