Hello! My name is Christine Hoffmark-Coffey and I was the 2022-2023 Cultural Resources Collections Intern at Andersonville Historical Site. Before my time here at Andersonville, I was the Collections Manager for the Mission Inn Hotel and Spa in Riverside, California, a registered historical building. I received my Bachelors in Art History from the University of California, Irvine in 2015 and my Masters in History from Claremont Graduate University in 2018.

I am a native Californian, but when my husband got stationed to the Marine Corps Logistics Base Albany, we became temporary Georgians. I thought it would be a wonderful way to get to know the history of the area by working at one of the nearby National Parks. When I received word that I had this opportunity I was excited to dive right in. As my term comes to an end, I can say I have a more in depth understanding of the history surrounding Andersonville as well as the stories of the POWs whose collections the park protects.

During my term, I was able to work with some fascinating collections and help catalog some interesting objects, such as John D. Vecchiola’s collection from his time as a POW in Stalag Luft IV, which included letters from home and a backpack (see “An Object Lesson”) and Carl Hedin’s collection from his time as a POW at Stalag Luft I, which included photographs of prison life.

My experience working at Andersonville has been a wonderful time. I would like to thank the Friends of Andersonville for funding my position, as well as my supervisor Bridget and the staff of the National Prisoner of War Museum for allowing me the opportunity to gain so much insight into National Park collections.

 

Andersonville National Historic Site employs numerous youths through a variety of programs each year. Our newest park employee is Zoe Kane-Preissing. Zoe came to Andersonville NHS from Chicago, Illinois to work with our maintenance division. Since the beginning of May, she has been helping the park gain its “Night Sky” designation by checking all man-made light sources for light pollution and conducting research for a Dark Sky program. Zoe is also assisting with the Facility Management Software System and anywhere else she is needed in the park. She applied to this position because she had “never lived in the south before or even been to Georgia and wanted something new.” Zoe would like to continue her NPS service in the future at other parks across the country. She loves the National Park Service because she gets to work in nature and believes in the meaningful work the NPS does to benefit others. She loves running, reading, cooking, and photography. She assisted with the Memorial Day event by taking pictures. She also enjoys participating on the park’s weekly trivia team. We are so happy to have Zoe on staff for six months and excited to see what she does with the Night Sky programming!