Concluding Reflections

      Hello, my name is Rachel Carter and I’ve been blogging on this page for the past few months as an intern for the museum and I wanted to share a short summary of my experience and takeaways:

      It’s been strange to have lived in the Kankakee County area for two semesters.  All I’ve heard is its name and maybe some names of present people, the terms of history passing through my mind and never lending a reminder to my thoughts of that place. But there is too much buried in the earth of its history. The ashes of burnt buildings, the artifacts of fur trade, and the bones of old wildlife all checkered above ground with plaques commending the names of those who served the area with their deeds and leadership.  By conducting research, learning how to blog effectively, and writing in a genre I’m now more familiar with, it was my goal to make the words of those who now live under the feet of Kankakee residents come to life. There are those of us who are knowledgeable about the people and events before our time. Still, some of us are ignorant as I was and tempted to become once this internship is over. However, my experience at this internship will remind me to seek out research so that I can keep making a difference in my community. As a new writer and researcher, I understand that there were lessons to be learned and mistakes to be made. I was privileged to make and learn from them by entering the mind of these influential historical figures of Kankakee County with my own creative spin. I’m so proud of my work and thankful for the people I got to work with. It’s been an honor to immerse myself in Kankakee’s story.

-Rachel Carter, Intern