My Favorite Moment - By Intern Clay Marsh

Clay Marsh is a senior majoring in Political Science. He is currently interning in D.C. for Senator Harry Reid.  He is the Mountain West Regional Director of College Democrats of America and he works in the USU Student Sustainability Office. Clay is also on the USU Government Relations Council and is a staff writer for the USU Statesman.

My Favorite Moment
By: Clay Marsh

My favorite moment of my internship so far has to be when Pope Francis came to give a speech to a joint session of Congress. I was able to stand outside on the west lawn of the capitol when His Holiness came out to bless the crowd after his speech. I know that it isn’t common to have a pope visit happen during an internship but it was one of those rare moments where the educational side and the occupational side of my internship collided to create a really special moment.

I can remember feeling as if I didn’t want to attend the event knowing that it was going to be a hassle trying to fight the crowds. I have always been the type of person to give up on trying to attend fun things when I know that it would require standing in lines or being surrounded by tons of people at the same time. It took some time but I finally realized that if I didn’t fight that inclination and do what I could to see the pope I would beat myself up for missing that chance for a very long time.

I loved listening to Pope Francis explain the need for greater cooperation and a common sense approach to immigration. His message of compassion for others deeply resonated with me and is something that I won't soon forget. Hearing Pope Francis commit himself to working with world leaders to solve the issues of our times is what really impressed me the most about him. I’ll also remember how his message resonated with liberals and conservatives and created an environment where sides could come together to govern effectively.

Being at the event and getting to see the Pope bless the large crowd after his speech is what helped me realize the incredible amount of diverse individuals that you're surrounded by in Washington. Where other opportunities to network and meet people usually involves meeting people from very similar backgrounds, in DC you meet and get to know people from all different walks of life that gives you interpersonal skills that are almost exclusive to the area.

Getting to be here for that occasion and the many other times where I had to chance to meet so many incredible and different people has been the motivation behind me trying to find a job so that I’m allowed to stay in this environment and hopefully build a happy and effective career in policy.

Being a student that was close to finishing I thought I wouldn’t do an internship in DC. But after some prodding from close friends within the IOGP I am incredibly grateful for not only the chance to see the Pope but the chance to be here and learn in-depth how the federal government works. With everything I’ve learned here I feel that my career opportunities have grown exponentially and the things that I’ve learned became more than just another class on politics but a first-hand, incredible chance to be a part of the process.