WAV Through the Eyes of an Intern
- Sarah Jenkins
- Aug 3
- 7 min read
Hello everyone!
In case we haven't met yet, my name is Sarah Jenkins, and I've had the pleasure of interning with We Amplify Voices since September 2025. You may have seen me around at Community CREATEures, Lift All Voices, or the WAV HQ!
As my internship is sadly coming to a close, I wanted to take a moment to reflect on the experience I've had here and all the amazing things that happened this year! From Lift All Voices to Writer's Roundtable, Hilltop Spring Jamboree to the Goodwill Mindful Masterpieces Showcase, I have seen this team give their all to uplift our community.
I am extraordinarily grateful to have had this opportunity to get to know the heart of this organization and all the amazing people that make our mission a reality.
Let me tell you more about it!
About the Internship
My involvement with WAV was organized through a partnership between Urban Arts Space and the Mellon Foundation. Each undergraduate in the program spends one semester working in Urban Arts Space's gallery, learning the ins and outs of arts-based programming, and what it means to serve the community.
After the first semester, each intern in the cohort has the opportunity to start an “externship” at one of several community partners in Columbus.
Although the list of community partners is packed with amazing organizations, I always knew my heart was set on working with WAV. Initially, what most drew me to WAV was their work in music. I loved the songwriting workshop models because music and writing have always motivated me the most in life.
Additionally, my time at Urban Arts Space opened my eyes to a passion for arts-based programming that is both accessible and responsive. These types of programs helped me when I was a kid, giving me the inspiration and encouragement I needed to get to where I am today.
Seeing WAV, I immediately knew that it would be the perfect way to combine these passions in a way that advocates for the programs that served me so much! After a year of hands-on experience, I can safely say my love for this field and for WAV's work is forever solidified.
Over this year, I've had the opportunity to serve across the organization and help with several exciting projects. I'd like to take a moment to reflect on some of them and what they mean to me!
Song Library Project
One of the first projects I got to work on at WAV was the Song Library project. WAV has released so many songs over the course of its history that a system was needed to keep track of all of them! To do that, the songs had to be collected, played, and catalogued. This was done by labeling details of each song, including album titles, genres, and vibes.
Once I started, I was shocked by just how many songs were in our discography! After my first count, we were up to 184! However, I soon discovered that there were additional songs released only on Bandcamp under WAV’s old name, The Dick and Jane Project. After adding these songs, I found that in total, WAV has 205 songs!!
In all honesty, I wasn’t prepared for how emotional working through the song library project would be. Many participants were going through some of the most challenging moments of their lives during their time working with WAV, and these workshops gave them the space and voice to speak about what happened to them. It is stunning to see what happens when you give kids the opportunity to speak about what is on their mind, which happens less than you might think.
Fun Fact: the first album released on We Amplify Voice’s Spotify was in collaboration with my middle school!
Preparation for Hilltop Spring Jamboree
As winter rolled around, I had the opportunity to collaborate with Hilltop Arts Collective and other local organizations to bring together the 2026 annual Hilltop Spring Jamboree.
I jumped at the opportunity to be involved, which eventually led to me helping write a grant for the Columbus Medical Foundation’s Youth Advisory Council. Their organization offered funding to events that promote the mental health of Youth, which is one of the biggest goals of the Jamboree.
While writing this grant, I became more educated about the prevalence of adverse childhood experiences, especially for children in Franklin County. Much of our work centers around bringing safe and positive experiences to the community to alleviate the consequences of negative experiences.
In researching these factors, I was able to recognize my own childhood experiences and the ways that programs like WAV created safe spaces for me to express myself and build self-confidence. The importance of our programming I described in this grant was not simply written for the funding; it's something I know firsthand is true.
After presenting the proposal to a group of middle schoolers (which, yes, was just as scary as it sounds), we secured the grant. And with this gracious funding, we were able to bring community resources, mindful art activities, and interactive musical experiences to the youth at Hilltop Spring Jamboree.
Mindful Masterpieces at Goodwill
Being a part of the Mindful Masterpieces sessions at Goodwill was perhaps the highlight of working at WAV. Almost every Friday since January, I had the opportunity to visit Goodwill locations around the city to help our amazing friend, Twyana Davis, facilitate her wonderful workshop Mindful Masterpieces.
Each of these weekly sessions started the same way: feet flat on the floor, hands in our lap, and eyes closed. Then, we would slowly take a deep breath in through our noses and out through our mouths before getting our hands (and sometimes the table) messy. As we took our time making our art, we would listen to music and have some of the loveliest conversations as a group, checking in on everyone’s week and making sure we were all okay.
Initially, I was worried about joining in on this program. Primarily, my art centers around music and writing rather than visual art. And, as someone who struggles with a lot of anxiety, I was unsure whether or not this program would go well. But after a couple of weeks in, I couldn’t have been more excited about the program and its participants; in fact, I noticed my anxiety go down each time Friday rolled around each week.
When working with Twyana at Goodwill, I would often tell the participants that Fridays were the highlight of my week — and I wasn’t lying. Having the chance to calm my mind, breathe, and get creative was so different from the chaotic day-to-day of college.
After holding workshops at three Goodwill locations, the amazing WAV team figured out how to bring everyone together for a Mindful Masterpieces Showcase. For a few hours, every participating Goodwill location was in the same space celebrating their work done through the same workshop. It was so great seeing the participants from the other locations whom I hadn’t seen in a minute.
At one point, the participants took the microphone and described how much the program meant to them and how much they enjoyed it. Hearing all of them take the lead to relay how this workshop had impacted them was so powerful to hear and solidified my reasons for wanting to do this type of work.
Columbus City Schools' Summer Experience Program
Toward the end of my internship, I also had the amazing opportunity to serve as program facilitator for Columbus City Schools’ Summer Experience program. In this role, a team of amazing WAV facilitators and I held art workshops with the students at Olde Orchard Elementary School over the course of a month.
Some of the projects we had the chance to do together included making sock puppets, self-portraits, sculptures, and watercolors. Then, we had visits from WAV program coordinator Ben, who performed with his band BlueCone and taught the kids the basics of bucket drumming.
Through all of these projects, the students had a chance to explore what it means to express themselves creatively. Each day, we would play their song requests and simply listen to what they wanted to talk about. Some told us explicitly, but it was easy to see what it meant for them to have a safe space to relax and do so.
These workshops not only provided space for these kids to express themselves, but also for them to understand what it means to be a part of a community. Through collaborative art projects and conversations, they had an opportunity to connect on a deeper level with others in their classroom and feel safe enough to be their authentic selves.
The opportunity to serve in this program was healing and cathartic for me. As a kid, it was always my art and music teachers who created a safe space for me to feel my emotions and express myself. For me, participating in this program gave me the chance to put that positive energy back into the world. I'm forever grateful to WAV for creating channels for that to be possible.
Signing Off
My experience working with WAV over the last year has been one of the most transformative of my life. The people I've worked with and the community they've cultivated have brought joy to so many corners of our city, including to my own life.
Before I go, it would be impossible not to thank our Director of Development and Marketing, Gigi, and our Director of Storytelling, Tiera, for all of their support in my time at WAV. For this internship, I had the absolute pleasure of working under their guidance and by their side through all of these projects and more.
Gigi is amazing at her job in propelling WAV forward and ensuring that the organization and its programs have all the resources they need to succeed. Not to mention she has been an amazing mentor in guiding me through some of what it takes to make all of this happen. Since I started, I've been inspired by her work and all of the positive, bubbly energy she brings to it and the team.
Tiera excels at photography and capturing the story of WAV. She has been dedicated to its mission for so long, and it's obvious in the heart of everything she does. She is one of the most fun people I know and has the power to make everyone in the room instantly feel like best friends. It's been an absolute joy to learn from her and the way that she captures and amplifies the heart of WAV.
To everyone else at WAV, Helen, Sefora, Stephanie, Ben, Ebri, Nora, Prophet: thank you so much for opening your arms to me and being so welcoming and supportive. I am blown away by all you all accomplish.
As I begin my Master's in Arts Policy and Administration this fall, I plan to take what I have learned and will continue to learn from WAV to further advocate for programs like it and the benefits they bring to our community.
Thank you, WAV, for this past year — my heart is forever grateful.
