Surprise! I Invented Icecream!

This semester, I decided to take a break from interning to explore London so the only work culture I have really experienced in London is going school. Last semester, I had a great time interning at Glass Entertainment Group and could talk about the environment there. However, for this assignment I will be talking about my summer job and my experience working there. Last summer, I worked at the Turkey Hill Experience as a Taste Lab Instructor and it was unlike any other job I've ever had.

the beautiful doors of T-HILL waiting for the screaming children to arrive

For those of you that do not know, the Turkey Hill Experience is a tourist attraction located in sunny Columbia, PA. It is a museum that has taste testing of Turkey Hill products and an opportunity to make your own ice cream. I used to pass the THE all the time and would often wonder if anyone ever visited the experience at all. Being from the area, I never had any desire to go and never knew anyone personally who had gone. After applying last summer to work in guest services, I quickly learned that the Turkey Hill Experience was a lot different than I had anticipated aqnd damn, it certainly was busy.

When I first applied, I was not sure what area I would be working in. I assumed I would probably be collecting tickets or working in the souvenier shop. However, I was quickly informed that I would be working as an Intrsucotr and would be required to learn a script, teach classes of 90 people and wear a lab coat. (big yikes)

an actual picture of me listening to safety protocol for 10 hours straight

As someone who grew up with a Turkey Hill store down the street from me, I knew alot about the products but very little about the company let alone what the Turkey Hill Experience was all about. One of the first things I learned about the job was HOW much they value safety above everything else. The orientation I had to go through to work at T-HILL I took with other new hires from all aspects of T-HILL. This means that I was learning about safety with factory workers, Quality Inspectors and truck drivers. To say the orientation was in depth is a complete understatement. Was it a complete waste of my time to learn about how to operate machienes safely? Umm probably. But, it did instil in me an emphasis on safety that subtly carried it's way into life at the experience.

me when a child saw me in my lab coat and asked if I was a scientist.

My main job at the Turkey HIll Experience was to teach "make your own" icecream classes and tea tastings to large groups of tourists. When I was not leading a lab, I was assisting others, prepping for upcoming classes, or cleaning. Because we were dealing with food, making sure things were cleaned properly was extremely important. For example, anything with peanut butter needed to be sterilized with a completed different set of washcloths and couldn't touch anything it was not meant to. Although this aspect of the job was very strict the rest of it was completely the opposite. Although my direct boss made sure we knew she was in charge of us she never took anything too seriously. It may have been because she was recently promoted but she was very laidback and goofed around during free time. Initally, I was not sure what to expect so when I came in on the first day and saw how much joking around there was I was pretty shocked.

t-hill and all the employees when the 1 millionth customer arrived

Going from the extremely serious oritentation to the fun atmosphere at THE was a relief for me. I was treated like a newbie for a while and shown the ropes by the few people but because so many of the people there were also seasonal workers, being the new person quickly fizzled out. Most of the people really enjoyed their jobs and you could tell. There was a real sense of community between all the workers and even the higher-ups. When I was there this summer they celebrated having their 1 millionth customer by having a huge celebration that everyone was included in. They even told the employees to stop in even if they were not working to be part of the festivities and many did. It goes to show how much the employees cared about their jobs and who they worked for.

In conclusion, I really enjoyed my time working at Turkey Hill Experience. The environment was fun, laid back and allowed me to get better at public speaking (which I honestly love to do.) Oh, and I got free Turkey Hill products the entire time I was there. They value safety and happiness really highly there and it shows through the passionate employees and the sheer number of tourists that come and visit. Although I know I am not going to work there for the rest of my life, I'm glad I found a job and environment that I truly enjoy being at and being a part of! And if any of you need an ice cream hook up... I know a guy :)