Scott Edwards ‘21
Associate Editor In Chief
How do you say goodbye to something you love? Some attempt to distract their minds and hide their feelings, others break down and experience some tough times. And these are completely acceptable reactions, but that is not what I am doing here. I am going to remember the great times and appreciate the best days of my life so far. I worried. I connected. I learned. I grew. This won’t be a goodbye, but maybe just a see you later. Here’s my thank you to NESN, which is where I interned this year.
July 26, 2019. NESN contacted me for a phone interview for an internship. To me, this was everything. A moment to prove my worth. A chance to show I have what it takes. My stress levels were high, but in the end, I knew the only way to get it was to be myself. So, that’s what I did. That worked, and I was onto the next stage where I had to go into the office for the first time. The mind kicks into hyper-speed at that time: what do I wear, what do I say, what do I need to be ready for? That’s when you remember that this is an interview for a job that talks about sports. Something that has been apart of me for a long time.
Fast forward to Aug. 8, 2019. I walked into the interview sweating bullets. I was minutes from being late because Boston traffic happens to be the worst regardless of time of the day. I wondered whether I wore the right clothes and how many people I was competing with during on-site interviews. But that’s where the fear comes in. All you can do is be yourself. If you worry about anything else, then you’re done. Go with your heart, not your mind. Since I am writing this, you know the rest of what happened here. I made it. And so, began the next seven months that became the best seven months of my life.
As I walked into the office for the first time as an intern, I remembered being eight years old watching NESN SportsDesk on my TV screen. Thirteen years later and I now have NESN on my resume . I was nervous but the good kind of nervous. That feeling never really went away. It was that rush of enjoying what you love and wanting to do the best that you can. There is a saying that goes, “if you love what you do, you’ll never work a day in your life.” It’s true. That is what I felt every single day and that is what I will work towards for the rest of my life.
Working wasn’t work. It was my dream. Being in that environment fueled me to love this crazy profession of journalism. A profession that people questioned when I told them that this was my dream. It’s a job that can bring you anywhere in the world and make you work so hard for simply the smallest story, but it’s all satisfying in the end. And whether I was working days or nights, I always loved the vibe of the office. Working days offered me an opportunity to work with the day crew and find daily stories, while nights allowed me to see how active and incredible a job can be in the world of sports while games are being played. Both teams taught me so much, but they are really the best collective team ever. They taught me more in the world of writing than anyone ever has. Talking me through things instead of leaving the edits and moving on with their days. Everyone is busy in that office, but the work they do is why NESN.com is where it is today.
I want to take the time to thank everyone because without every single piece of advice I have received from each, I wouldn’t have had the confidence to do my job or leave with my head held high as a look to finish school and find a job.
To Ricky, Thank you for everything. I would have been lost from the start if you weren’t there to answer my thousands of questions. Thank you for giving me the lead with the Tom Brady series, sending stories my way as I struggled, and believing in me to be a part of a team that I probably had no right to be on as an intern. You were the first person on digital I talked to, and you were the one that helped me get to this point. Thanks for giving me this shot. Thank you for everything you do. You gave me opportunities that were out of my comfort zone but prepared me for whatever may be next. I will carry that forever.
To Ben: thanks for accepting me as a part of your team and for giving me tasks when I felt lost. You are the leader in the workplace that I can only dream of being some day.
To Dakota: thank you for the nickname that I will never forget and the many laughs while also being able to give me the constructive criticism I needed.
To Adam: thank you for displaying professionalism at its finest while including me in conversations that I was too shy to join in on my own. I wish I had more time to pick your brain in my time at NESN.
To Mike: you helped instill a confidence in me that I didn’t have before I walked in the door and one I wouldn’t have had walking out. I am grateful for your conversations even if there weren’t many, and I can only hope to learn more somehow in the future from you.
To Marcus: thanks for giving me tip after tip over the second semester. Saturdays became our day. A chance for me to learn with less distractions and more focus. Giving me pointers in a new semester that I missed during my first.
To Logan: I appreciate every second you gave me to go over my edits. Helping me understand first-hand what I am doing wrong, what I can fix in my own writing, and showing me the ropes for a lot of weekends in a row. I became a better writer because of you.
To Fred: thanks for being there to greet me every morning as I took my corner away from everyone else and for being nice enough to have a conversation with me despite my shyness. .
To Pat: You’re my guy. Your job is tough, man. Thanks for all those Thursday night Bruins games and for showing me the ropes. Thanks for being a friend and a familiar face to help calm my nerves.
To Taylor: you may not be there anymore, and I only got to talk to you for two weeks at NESN, but you have given me the advice that I needed. It was advice that I will take with me into my next job and the one after that. You instilled a glimmer of hope in me that I needed more than I ever thought. Thank you for everything.
I leave the night team for last because that’s where I feel I belonged the most. That’s not because I didn’t fit in with the people on days, but rather because the nights are my time. That was my niche and those that helped me in that spot deserve all the credit in the world for guiding me through games while also covering through those games with incredible detail.
To Chris: you may have moved on from NESN to pursue the perfect job for yourself, but you were the one who guided me through my first on-site game. You let a kid dazzled by being on the TD Garden court understand the tasks that had to happen. You willed me to get audio from the likes of Kemba Walker. Something I would have let people step on me for and got nothing because I am just starting out. Thank you for helping me live that first experience that taught me that I need to do this.
To Alex: thanks for giving me insight on places outside of NESN. Also, thanks for not hating me when I said nothing on your first day as my shyness and headache took over. I wish the second semester didn’t take away my chance to get to know you or Sean more, but here we are. It was a pleasure!
To Sean, we got very little time working together, but you still left an impact on me. I appreciate the edits you gave me and the “good jobs.” Those don’t ever get old.
To Gabby: thank you for pushing me to be a better intern even if we didn’t get much time to talk to one another. The sky’s the limit for your future and I look forward to seeing you in the field!
To Lauren: I will never forget your love for Anders Bjork and Brian Johnson.You’re one of the best workers I have ever seen, and if anyone needs proof of your work ethic, you did a Celtics and Bruins Notes/Wrap on the same night as I sat there nervous out of my mind wishing I could do more. You gave me tips and tricks that I will use forever.
And to Abbie: thanks for giving me a chance to share my thoughts and worries with you almost every Thursday for seven months. Thanks for giving me the confidence to be the best in every way. I really can’t thank you enough.
To the people who I didn’t name: you, too, gave me a direction and lessons that I will carry with me. This will not be the last any of you hear from me. I can guarantee it.
I walk out of this experience with knowing people who I consider to be not just colleagues, but also my friends. That’s not something everyone can say when they walk out of an internship. Oh, how much I wish I could have ended this the right way. In the office. With everyone around and just trying to find somewhere to sit. Those are the days I will miss the most.
This is an experience I would tell anyone and everyone to go for. It’s not everyday Jim Rice walks by your desk. If you are into sports or not, go for this. If any part of you wants to write for a living, learn from the best people this world has to offer. They’re brilliant and you will come out of it a million times better than you went in. It brings a tear to my eye that I may never walk into this Watertown office again and that the last time I did, I had no idea. COVID-19 may have stolen that moment from me, but I will take out of this with memories, lessons, and an experience to last a lifetime.
So, it’s on to the next journey. I don’t know where that will bring me. It could be the next town over or it could very well be hundreds of miles away. Either way, NESN set me up to tackle the next challenges in my life with a confidence I never expected to have. All I can say now is thank you, NESN. Thank you for giving this kid a chance to grow and learn from the absolute best. Until next time…
Turf out.
