Matt Sharp – Accounting Internship

I am interning in the finance department of Garden Spot Communities, a senior living facility. They are a parent company to a few different subdivisions. On the days of my internship, I go to Garden Spot Village, which is located right down the road from the school here in New Holland. The entire organization is non-profit and everyone cares for the residents very much, so I am glad to be a part of this team of employees. My mentor is the Chief Financial Officer (CFO) of Garden Spot Communities.  I am getting to work with him as well as multiple people under his management. I am having a great time and learning many new things here.

On a daily basis, I will do a few things. Sometimes, I work with an employee from Accounts Payable. On these days I am responsible for scanning invoices into a system called Oracle. Then, once they are scanned in, I put them through imaging and fix any mistakes that are made with numbers, names, or anything else. Once they are all corrected, they are ready to actually be paid, which is a task I have not done yet. Other days I will work with Accounts Receivable, where I will enter deposits from residents into their accounts. Also, there are a lot of miscellaneous deposits like kitchen and convenience store sales, marathon entrance fees, and renovation payments that I enter into another system as well.

I have been involved in two big projects at Garden Spot Village. The first project was to complete an application to reapply for tax exemption since they are a non-profit organization. I had to fill out the application using details from previous applications. I was required to meet with a few people from different departments to review the paperwork and make changes that were necessary. Currently, I am involved in another project that will be going on for the remaining time at my internship.  The business is expanding and adding more independent living units along with extra memory support units. For this project, I am involved in meetings and conference calls more rather than making big actions since it is such a big renovation. Nonetheless, it is an exciting experience to be a part of such major financing. Sometimes it is challenging to remember all of the information and how it applies, but I feel very successful when I am able to contribute to conversations about this project.

Other than my accounting and marketing classes in high school, this is really the first time I have been able to see the business side of the world. Unlike my classes, I am truly able to see the real application of things I have learned, which has helped me grow in my understanding of how business works. Like I said before, I am learning so much about the business and accounting in general, and I am excited to continue my education of these principles. This experience has only strengthened my career goals. I am planning on going to Liberty University to major in accounting, and now that I have had this real-life experience, I am eager to learn more about accounting and business in the future. I feel confident with my choice of major and I can’t wait to use what I have learned as a part of Garden Spot Communities in my future.