Two interns pound the streets on Daily Sentinel beat

Cayla Westergard

Cayla Westergard of rural Akron returns to the Daily Sentinel for her second year as an intern.

The 2005 Akron-Westfield graduate said she enjoys writing and loved her time at the Sentinel last year.

Luke Widbin

"My favorite story last year was when we did a hot dog taste test," Westergard said. "Everyone from the newsroom tasted different kinds, like Ball Park and Hebrew National and even turkey dogs. The newsroom was blindfolded and we ranked the different kinds. The turkey dogs were last, believe it or not."

Westergard also enjoys covering the fair, as she was a former 4-H'er herself.

She will be a senior this fall at Iowa State University, where she double majors in broadcast journalism and family and consumer sciences.

Her mother Colleen, who was also the speech coach at Akron-Westfield, helped spark her interest in broadcast journalism.

Westergard also will be starting an internship with the Meredith Corporation in Des Moines this fall. Their publications include "Better Homes and Gardens."

"I'll be shooting and editing videos there," Westergard said. "I'll work on things like garden and home makeovers and demonstration videos for scrapbooking."

After college, Westergard may pursue graduate school.

Her dream job is to become the next Martha Stewart.

Luke Widbin, a 2007 graduate of Sioux Center Community High School, is also joining the staff as an intern this summer.

"I've always loved to write," said Widbin. "As a kid, I would write mini novels and my teachers and parents always motivated me to keep writing."

Widbin is a communications major at Northwestern College in St. Paul, Minn. and hopes to pursue a degree in journalism or radio broadcasting.

He is quick to give credit to his parents Randy and Nancy Widbin as well as his upper level writing teachers, Mary Bleeker and Carla Hibma.

In college, Widbin is a sports writer for Northwestern's campus newspaper, The Column. Ice hockey ranks number one on his list for favorite sports and he hopes to one day be a sports writer or the play-by-play commentator for the St. Louis Blues hockey team.

Widbin began at the Sentinel after finishing his freshmen year at Northwestern College in May. He is also employed at the Cinema 5 movie theater in Sioux Center.

"I'm working at the Sentinel to get a feel for the newspaper business...and gain journalism experience."