My name is Theresa Thoms. My four-month co-op position was as the Special Events and Communications Coordinator at the Royal Inland Hospital Foundation. My purpose was to assist the Foundation with fundraising efforts for hospital equipment through the planning and execution of special events and activities (such as cheque presentations and donor receptions) and the promotion of the Foundation’s fundraising efforts through marketing initiatives. In addition, I would assist with the researching and writing of patient and equipment stories for the RIH Foundation Annual Report.

My best day so far was the SCT&I Golf Tournament. I enjoyed interacting with the golfers and volunteers all day. Most of the work for this tournament was preparation and given the nature of this event, there was a lot of downtime during my 15-hour day while the golfing took place. I jumped on a golf cart with one of the men who has been going to and helping out with this event for nearly 20 years!  We were going around to the volunteers that were stationed around the course making sure that everyone was taken care of – from bathroom breaks to bringing them drinks. I had never driven a golf cart before, so the man let me take lead for an hour or two. He kept yelling out to the golfers that he was “teaching the grandkid how to drive.” I basically had to be peeled off that cart! That was a long day, but it was a really good day.

The Career Education Department helped me secure this amazing job and I am so thankful for everything that they, and specifically my co-op coordinator, Marion Oke, has done for me. Without Marion, I would not be gaining this incredible real-life work experience at the RIH Foundation!

Doing a co-op work term is an irreplaceable and extremely beneficial experience. Even if the co-op work term is not exactly the work you intend to pursue, the experience itself allows you unprecedented insight into the workforce and motivates you to think about what you want in your future career.

For more information about the Co-op program visit the website or call 250-371-5627.