Being a representative of a business or an ambassador and advocate can sometimes be a daunting undertaking. Now try doing this as a representative of an entire town. This is the situation I find myself in right now.
As part of this internship I will be representing the Town of Marana at the Arizona League of Cities and Towns conference that is taking place later on this month. I have been tasked with generating a theme, designing a booth, and drawing the attention of conference attendees. This is the capstone moment of my internship and I feel as though there has been a lot of emphasis put on how the booth turns out and how it will be bigger and better than all of the others. At first, it seemed as though it was a daunting and insurmountable task that I would never be able to complete in an adequate manner, but as time has passed I have chipped away at it bit by bit and now have a working concept that is really taking off.
The theme I decided on is “Soaring into the Future” where I will be highlighting the tech and aviation companies that make Marana their home. We have several companies in Town that make parts and equipment for NASA, the defense industry, general aviation, and branches of the armed forces. I have been fortunate enough to tour some of these facilities and be exposed to cutting edge technology that is hiding in plain sight. Most of these facilities are located off of I-10 and around the Marana Airport and if you didn’t know what you were looking for or recognize a name you wouldn’t have a clue as to what is actually taking place inside.
Many of the companies I visited are growing and appear to be doing very well. Three of them have recently finished up or are in the process of expanding their facilities. Some of the companies collaborate on projects and others use each other’s products in their manufacturing process. The growth and collaboration between these companies is a great thing for the town. They provide us with excellent jobs in tech related fields, excellent revenue streams, and I think most importantly a collaborative and innovative business climate. We should all want to see their continued success and more companies joining their ranks.
This project has given me a good look into the tech and aviation companies that exist in Marana. It has also provided me with an opportunity to meet some quality people that are eager to help me out. For a project that started off as daunting, it has turned out to be delightfully rewarding.
