George L. Richards III - Hampton University Short Course 2006

“Yesterday is the past, tomorrow is the future, but today is a gift. That is why they call it the present.”

I remember the many times my stepfather would say these words to me. However, only now do I understand their true meaning. Yesterday is over, so forget about. Tomorrow will come, but don’t wait on it. Today is the true prize.

Journalism was not my first love, nor was it my second, but like true love, it found me. I am a broadcast journalism student from the Scripps Howard School of Journalism and Communications at Hampton University. After a freshmen year filled with mixing chemicals and dissecting pigs in a smelly biology lab, friends lured me into covering football for the campus radio station. One year later, I was a broadcast student working as the sports director for WHOV 88.1 FM, the campus station. WHOV brought into focus what a career in journalism could do for me. Working as a sports analyst for football, and men’s and women’s basketball, I have been able to improve my skills. Broadcasting a weekly coach’s show was the cherry on top.

However, to take the next of many steps, I felt it essential to align myself with the Scripps Howard Foundation Wire. This internship will greatly improve not only my print journalism skills but also my reporting techniques. Until then, I am sticking to the plan – enjoy the gifts that the new day brings.

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