PORT CHARLOTTE, Fla. — While many high-schoolers are spending their summer relaxing, students in the Charlotte County Utilities summer internship program are rolling up their sleeves to learn the skills that keep the community running.
FOX 4’s Charlotte County Community Correspondent Alex Orenczuk joined three student interns Monday as they worked alongside county utility crews, getting a firsthand look at the essential services local government provides.
Watch Fox 4's Alex Orenczuk report on the internship program:
The internship includes training in water testing, where students collect samples directly from the source and learn how different departments work together to ensure safe, reliable drinking water. As part of their fieldwork, students also flushed fire hydrants and measured water pressure.
"What surprised me the most since I've been here is how much everything correlates with each other," said intern Kevin Estremera. "Doing one thing is another person's job in the lab, processing chlorine or water, and then it goes back to the people out there to know what to do."
Twenty students participated in the internship this summer, split into two cohorts in June and July. Each applicant submitted an essay to earn a spot in the program.
Among them were sisters Destynee and Desiah Mitchell, who said the program was both a learning opportunity and a way to earn money. Their stepfather also works for Charlotte County Utilities.
"I go to FSW, so I have to go to college, I have to buy all my stuff for it. And it was a good opportunity to learn something," Destynee said, who was participating in the program for the second year in a row.
"I didn't know any of these jobs to begin with, and I didn't know how much it helps people in the county," said Desiah. "So seeing everybody work and what it's for, it was really a shocker to me.
That kind of realization is exactly what the county is hoping for, said Utilities Public Relations Manager, Stu Gooden. The internship, he said, is designed to build a pipeline of local talent and introduce students to meaningful careers in public service.
"Giving these students hands-on experience, field experience, delivering the various utility services that we provide, we hope that sparks an interest in wanting to stay and work for the utility one day," Gooden said.
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