Serving the Hispanic community

My work at The Bulletin can range from stressful to rewarding. As a general-assignment reporter, I cover stories that vary from day to day. One day I could be writing a story on an elementary-school assembly and the next I could be writing a story on immigration. I must admit that my writing has improved over the months, but I still need help with writing on deadline. Editors and reporters here at the paper are friendly and eager to help me whenever I have a question. Being the only reporter fluent in Spanish has helped in my internship. I reported and wrote a feature story on Quinceanera, a celebration of a girl’s 15th birthday as she makes the transition from childhood to adolescence. It was a front-page Sunday story. Today, I went to a small town, Madras, to help a senior reporter get local reaction to the federal immigration bill. I used my skills as a reporter and a translator to get the story right. It was challenging. Nevertheless, I’m happy to say that I was able to help serve the Hispanic community in Central Oregon.

-- Kimberlina Rocha, California State University-Fresno, The Bulletin, Bend, Ore.