Today is #NationalInternDay, and I am reflecting on one of the most important lessons I learned early in my career.
Like many, I had internships that gave me valuable hands-on experience. My time in Mayor Cahill’s office ultimately led to my first full-time job.
But it was the summer I spent at Message and Media, under the watchful eyes of Lisa Chapland and Frank Sternberg, alongside Leah Casterlin, that taught me something even more valuable: not just how to do the work, but how people should be treated at work.
By then, the firm had already established itself as one of the best in the business, and Steve DeMicco and Brad Lawrence had already reached icon status. Yet, as green as I was, everyone there invested time in making sure I was learning, contributing, and growing, not just doing busy work.
One moment has stayed with me for nearly 30 years.
A candidate visiting the office directed me to go feed their parking meter. Before I could even respond, a member of the M&M team gently but firmly stepped in.
“He’s here to learn, not pay for your parking.”
That moment said everything about the kind of workplace they wanted to build.
Nearly three decades later, I often think about that lesson when I look at the team we’ve built at Lenox Consulting and Oasis Media.
Gabriella Dragone joined us as she was finishing her final year at Montclair State University. From quiet beginnings, she has grown into an indispensable part of our #localnews operation.
Louie Pasculli started as a sports reporting intern for TAPinto SOMA before joining us to cover news in his hometown of Hamilton Township. Although he’s now thriving in another full-time career, which couldn’t make us prouder, he remains a trusted contributor to our team.
This summer we’ve been fortunate to welcome Gabrielle Plaag and Miki Schnitzer. Their initiative impressed us immediately, and together we’ve built more structured internship opportunities that we hope will continue attracting talented young journalists and communicators. While we’ll miss them when they head back to school, we hope they’ll remain part of our extended team for years to come.
Whether it’s Gabriella, Louie, Gabrielle, or Miki, our goal has always been the same: give people meaningful work, real responsibility, mentorship, and yes, pay them. Internships should be about opportunity, not free labor.
One of the most gratifying compliments we receive is from people who have interacted with one of them, and who tell us how professional, thoughtful, and genuinely kind our team members were. If there’s one lesson we’ve tried to pass along, it’s that relationships matter. Treat people with respect, be curious, be reliable, and always leave a positive impression.
Those are the lessons I was fortunate enough to learn as an intern nearly 30 years ago. I’m grateful to the people who invested in me, and I hope we’re doing the same for the next generation.
And yes… we’ve never asked an intern to pay for anyone’s parking.
