Lauren’s Blog 

If you asked me what my favorite place in St. Louis is, I would say, hands down, Forest Park.

So, when my Public Relations professor told us that our final project was centered around Forest Park, needles to say, I was actually excited. For the assignment, we were told to act as if we were the public relations director for Forest Park Forever, a non-profit organization responsible for the restoration and maintenance of Forest Park. We had to put together a press kit, which includes details about the history and features of the park for the media, in the form of a pitch letter, press release, fact sheet, public service announcement and photo captions.

When doing research, I discovered a ton of fun things to do in Forest Park:

• Variety of paths that circle the park for biking, blading, running, walking or any other exercise activity you can think of.
• Steinberg Skating Rink is an outside skating rink that is open from November through March.
• At The Boathouse Restaurant you can enjoy a great meal on the patio, overlooking the lake.
• The Muny remains the nation’s oldest and largest outdoor theater, where you can enjoy a free show under the summer stars.
• The St. Louis Zoo, which has been named “the best zoo in the country” is a great place to spend the afternoon outside. And, it’s FREE!
• Twilight Tuesdays is a popular outdoor concert series held at the Missouri History Museum during the warm summer months.

Thanks to all the great attractions Forest Park has to offer, my semester-long Public Relations project turned out to be a success. I can’t wait to explore all the great things the park has to offer this summer!

I have finally confirmed an internship for this summer!

I will be working for Saint Louis Soccer United, which is a professional soccer investment and development group dedicated to bringing both a men’s and women’s Major League Soccer team to the St. Louis area. The integrated project is headed by Jeff Cooper, a graduate of Saint Louis University law school and managing partner of SimmonsCooper law firm. In addition to securing an expansion franchise in the MLS, Saint Louis Soccer United is also working to build a soccer complex in Collinsville, Illinois, consisting of an 18,500-seat stadium, eight turf practice fields and 400 acres of retail, office and residential development.

For the summer, I will be writing press releases and doing other media-related projects, mostly for the launch of the St. Louis women’s professional soccer team, which begins in the Spring of 2009. It will be a perfect way to combine my academic love for writing with my athletic love of soccer.

If you want to learn more about Saint Louis Soccer United you can click on their website: http://www.stlouissoccerunited.com/component/option,com_frontpage/Itemid,1/

The best part about the internship is that I will continue to live in my apartment right off campus and will get to stay in St. Louis with all of my friends for the summer!

We finally finished our spring season last Saturday with games against Wash U and Missouri State. We played well and won, so all in all it was a successful conclusion to a long year.

Today’s practice was our annual “Soccer Olympics.” Every year for our last practice, we break up into separate teams and compete in several events, such as dribbling, shooting and chipping games. Although it sounds like a simple series of friendly games, the competition actually gets intense and heated. My team got 2nd place, so we missed out on the free t-shirts, but I’m still proud of our performance.

In addition, tonight is our athlete formal! At the end of every year we pick one night when all the athletes are actually in town and rent out a banquet hall in Soulard. This year the event is at Lemp Mansion and I know it will be a good time, as always!

Here is a picture of some of the soccer and tennis girls, before we left for last year’s dance…

Yesterday, Thursday April 10, was a day that will go down in SLU history, and I can’t tell you how excited I was to actually be a part of it!

Yesterday was the first day that our new Chaifetz Athletic Arena was open to the public. The first event held in the arena was the “Get-in-the-Game” Luncheon. This annual event is a fundraiser for the athletic department, in which over 125 women from the St. Louis business community gather with female student-athletes in order to show their emotional and financial support for female athletics. Several speakers, including the dean of the John Cook School of Business, the Women’s Basketball Coach Shimmy Gray and a senior tennis player, all shared their stories about how a SLU athletic scholarship provides influential opportunities to use our academic and athletic skills to make a difference in the lives of others. I spent the morning sitting and visiting with a group of women who all worked for the financial department of Boeing. It was great to hear several different first-hand experiences about the opportunities that await us after graduation.
The Chaifetz Arena dedication and open house ceremonies were held that afternoon. After a series of short speeches from Father Biondi, Mayor Francis Slay, our new Athletic Director Chris May and several other influential administrators, the inaugural ribbon cutting took place. Later, we toured our new locker rooms, medical training facility and weight room. I knew the arena would be nice, but I have to admit that it exceeded my highest expectations. We can’t wait to officially move in next week!

A quality, premier episode of The Office was a perfect ending to a perfect Thursday that I will never forget……. from start to finish.

Last Saturday, we had our annual “end-of-the-year” soccer banquet. After a great Italian dinner catered by Joe Bocardi’s, our coaches reflected on our past season and announced a variety of awards. One of the dads from the team, who is our unofficial “team photographer,” put together an entertaining slide show full of team and action shots. After, the juniors gave the seniors each a scrapbook, that we spent most of our spring breaks making. At the end of the night, the seniors each gave a “goodbye” speech, evoking both laughter and tears from the crowd.

It’s weird to think that I will be giving that same speech, having to say goodbye to SLU and the sport of soccer, in a year from now.

In other news, we have our first spring home game today. We play Wisconsin-Milwaukee at 1, right after the guys team, who plays Tulsa at 11. The sun is finally out, so it should be a great Saturday afternoon of soccer!

If I could use one word to describe my spring break, it would be ADVENTUROUS. Family vacations with the Olsons are usually jam packed with activities every hour, on the hour, from sunrise to sunset. Although we couldn’t make it to any prime-time tourist locations this year, we decided to make the most of the natural attractions that the great state of Texas has to offer.

Adventure 1: We drove to Fredericksburg, which is a small bed-and-breakfast town in the Texas hill country, about an hour south of Austin. We spent most of the day climbing Enchanted Rock – one of the largest rock formations in Texas. After the climb, we drove into town and did a little antique shopping.

Adventure 2: On Thursday, we rented mountain bikes from a bicycle shop in downtown Austin. First, we rode around Town Lake and then went “off-roading” along the Green Belt Trail. The numerous rocks, branches, and hills made for one of the most intense bike rides I’ve ever been on.

Adventure 3: We spent all of Saturday afternoon boating on Lake Austin. I officially decided that my future husband and I will retire in one of the many breathtaking houses along the shore of any lake in Austin.

Adventure 4: On Saturday night I went to a small, outdoor Pat Green concert, who is a famous Texas songwriter. Listening to country music, outside on a warm spring night, under a full moon, with my brother and old friends…….was the perfect way to end a perfect Spring Break.

Midterms are finally over! It was a crazy week of exams and papers, but the thought of Spring Break helped me battle through. A Saturday full of sweet Texas sun turned out to be the perfect remedy for a stressful week.

Fortunately, Dallas has one of the best major league soccer teams in the MLS. Tonight, me and a couple of guys from the SLU men’s soccer team (who are visiting Dallas for the week) went to see FC Dallas play against the LA Galaxy. Although we went to the game for the soccer, most of the fans came to partake in the “David Beckham” hype. It was amazing to see how one man can attract so much attention. Every time he took a corner kick, the entire stands stood up and cameras flashed rapidly. Despite the final score (0-0), it was still a great game and a great night for soccer.

In addition to relaxing a little, the rest of my week will be dedicated to making scrapbooks for the seniors on our team for the soccer banquet. On Wednesday, my family and I are driving to Austin, which is about three hours south of Dallas. We plan on engaging in some adventurous activities, such as mountain biking, hiking and kayaking, all of which I am  anxiously anticipating.

Everywhere I look this semester, I have been bombarded with THE ultimate question - what do you really want to do with your life? While “I don’t know” used to be an acceptable answer, I feel as if my future is fast approaching, which has forced me to make some important decisions and take action.

Thankfully, SLU has provided me with numerous outlets to turn to for help. Career Services is a great resource for personal, one-on-one advice for outlining an area of study, writing a resume, conducting mock interviews or finding internships. Tomorrow, over 125 organizations will be in the student center for the annual Career Fair. It will be a great opportunity to investigate different jobs, internships, graduate schools and volunteer opportunities. Last week, as a member of the pre-law club, I was able to attend a small career fair for pre-law students. I talked to several lawyers and organizations about possible summer positions to gain some exposure to the field of law. I really enjoyed meeting the Assistant Director of the Equal Housing Opportunity Council, who advocates for fair housing and policy changes on the local, state or federal levels.

Thanks to SLU’s various career oriented resources, I feel confident that I am taking steps in the right direction toward finding my calling in life.

Although it’s important to be prepared for the future, sometimes this quote helps to remind me that no one knows exactly what tomorrow holds:

“Don’t feel guilty if you don’t know what you want to do with your life…the most interesting people I know didn’t know at 22 what they wanted to do with their lives, some of the most interesting 40 year olds I know still don’t.” - Buz Luhrmann

We have our first spring soccer games tomorrow (even though there is snow on the ground and it’s freezing). We play University of Memphis and Oklahoma State University - back to back. The bus leaves at 6 am, bright and early, tomorrow morning.

All division one teams are only allowed to compete on five days throughout the spring season. Since it is mostly for development, none of these games count for rankings or statistics. Next weekend we travel to Iowa to play University of Iowa at their indoor facility. After spring break we have three weekends where we are at home.

Although I’m really excited to start playing games again, it’s going to be weird being a senior (in soccer terms, since the seniors don’t compete in the spring).

Yaaaaaaaaaaa Billikens!

The first week of Lent is almost over. I originally intended on giving up gum, but changed my mind. At the last minute, I realized that not having gum might hinder my academic performance. For some reason, it helps me concentrate. Instead, I have decided to be more proactive for the season and do things, as opposed to giving things up. I decided to write at least one hand-written letter to someone different each week. I believe that personal letters are an intimate and powerful form of communication that is slowly becoming extinct in the face of expanding technology. I actually conducted my communication research project last semester on the therapeutic benefits of letter-writing.

In addition to writing letters, I also found a convenient website at which you can listen to a short 10 minute Lenten reflection for each day. It allows me to slow down and remember what is important. It’s a great start to the day!

Pray-As-You-Go

Through SLU’s campus ministry, you can also participate in a variety of on and off-campus retreats. In addition, they offer mission trips for students of all ages. This year, students are traveling to New York, New Orleans, Texas and several other fun states.

There is never a dull moment at SLU!

PS - Happy Valentine’s Day!~