Lea Thoele, a 2015 Teutopolis High School graduate, recently finished an internship where she helped organize President Donald Trump's events around the country and world.
She interned in the Office of Presidential Advance, a group tasked with making the president's events run smoothly. The office decides what the press corps has access to and where they can set up cameras. Presidential Advance staff also work with employees who travel ahead of Trump to set up events.
"I learned a lot," said Thoele, 21, a student at the University of Illinois Springfield. "We did a lot of work with advanced associates. We make sure they have everything they need."
Although she didn't formally meet Trump, Thoele said she saw him a few times at events.
"I got to see how he actually is," she said, "and not how the media portrays him or how he is on tv.
Living in Washington, D.C. and interning on the White House campus was motivating for Thoele. She worked at the Eisenhower Executive Office Building, located near the West Wing, where most White House offices are.
"I would walk up the steps and look at the White House," Thoele said. "I took a picture from that angle about 40 times.
Knowing not many people get to experience that was really humbling."
Thoele plans to get back to her classwork, but she also has an upcoming internship with the Illinois Senate Republicans.
This story appeared in The Effingham Daily News on December 27, 2017.
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