Skagit Farmers Supply is excited to welcome four members to its agronomy internship program this spring. Mason Rutgers, Jessica Funderburke and Marina de la Cruz are all first time interns; Khalil Al-Wazan is returning for his second summer with the program. All four started during the month of May, and will stay with the co-op until the fall. Our customers will probably see these members at all our agronomy locations and out in the field as they shadow our agronomists, take soil and field samples, make deliveries and blend fertilizers.
This is the third year Skagit Farmers Supply has hosted its agronomy internship program, and the program continues to grow each year.
Applicants can be in any level of secondary education, from a freshman in college through graduate school, and must be pursuing a degree in agriculture. Throughout the growing season, interns in the paid program gain hands-on experience with more than 20 crops, as well as learning opportunities such as delivering products, soil and tissues sampling, weed scouting, formulating dry and liquid fertilizer blends, mapping customer fields, managing records, assisting with custom planting and fertilizer application, assisting with customer events and more. Interns also have the opportunity to obtain industry licenses, such as the Washington State Pesticide Applicator License.
Jon Jarvis, SFS agronomist, said one of the best parts of the Skagit Farmer’s internship program is the flexibility it allows for both co-op members and interns.
“Our members are our owners, so the nice thing with our program is that we can cater our internship program for both our members and our interns,” said Jarvis, who took over stewardship of the program this year. “We can base what the interns learn off what their interests are, what their career goals are; we can be flexible with how we build their program.”
Jarvis said with co-op customers who are involved in all aspects of agriculture, from nurseries and greenhouse farming to conventional and organic farms, the interns can find areas of agronomy they really enjoy.
One 2021 intern, Marina de la Cruz, said that flexibility and the diversity of the co-op’s producers is the reason she chose to apply to the SFS program.
“I’m really hoping to widen my perspective on job opportunities in the agricultural field, and I think this internship is a great way to do that,” she said. “I think it’s really cool that they supply to so many different types of farmers, so I get to learn about so many different things.”
Jarvis said the program is important because it helps introduce the next generation to farming.
“We’re trying to get new people involved in farming who are excited about farming, excited about the new technologies that are out there,” he said. “We’ve got a goal to feed the world and a growing population, and we need as many farmers as we can with diverse backgrounds to do that.”
Meet the 2021 Skagit Farmers Supply interns:
Mason Rutgers
Mason is an agronomy major from Lynden, Washington, who will spend most of his internship at the Lynden agronomy location. He will be a sophomore at University of Nebraska-Lincoln this fall. Mason hope to spend the summer leaning about different fertilizer blends, what each is used for, as well as terminology, common requirements and how to diagnose fields.
Mason hopes to pursue a career in a field relating to soil fertility. Some of his interests include soil science and conservation.
When not working, he enjoys hanging out with friends, traveling, and spending time in the mountains or at the beach.
Jessica Funderburke
Jessica is a Stanwood, Washington, native. She graduated this spring from Tarleton State University in Stephenville, Texas, where she earned a degree in agricultural studies. Jessica will be working mainly at the Burlington agronomy location, shadowing the agronomists and helping with a variety of jobs throughout the summer. She hopes the Skagit Farmers Supply internship will help her explore different careers in the agricultural field. She says she is excited for the experience the internship will provide, giving her a strong foundation of hands-on experience to make her next career moves.
When not working, Jessica likes to be out on her boat, fishing for sturgeon.
Marina de la Cruz
Marina is from Lake Stevens, Washington, entering her final year at Washington State University’s Everett Campus this fall. She will primarily be located at the Conway agronomy plant, working on a variety of jobs, such as deliveries and blending fertilizer.
Marina says she’s hoping this internship will help widen her perspective on job opportunities in the agricultural field. She said she’s excited to work for Skagit Farmers, as the co-op serves a wide variety of producers and farmers, giving her lots of experience across different sectors.
Marina is studying organic and sustainable agriculture, and hopes the internship will help narrow down what she wants to do after graduation next year.
When not working, Marina enjoys hiking and gardening.
Khalil Al-Wazan
Khalil is returning for his second agronomy internship with Skagit Farmers Supply, after completing an internship with the company last summer. He grew up in Arlington, and will return to Washington State University in the fall for his final year, pursuing a degree in landscape, nursery and greenhouse management.
Khalil said he was excited by the variety of what he learned last year, and hopes to continue to round-out his hands-on education. He said while he didn’t grow up in agriculture, working for Skagit Farmers last summer helped open his eyes to everything the agricultural industry entails, and helped him learn a lot in a short period of time, including about topics such as fertilizer blending, the applications of field and soil samples, and how to make field recommendations.
In the future, Khalil hopes to operate his own nursery. When not working, Khalil is a big cinema buff, and enjoys watching movies.
