Meet the 2016-2017 Interns!

September 28, 2016
Jess Daddio
Go Outside

August marked the beginning of a new school year for thousands of college students across the country and for us, the beginning of our 2016-2017 B.R.O. College Ambassadorship.Meet the fresh meat of the magazine—you’ll be seeing them online and at events throughout the school year, so be sure to give them a fist bump or a bootie beer, whichever is more appropriate.

Jess Wiegandt

My life consists of romping around in the woods for class and fun. I am double majoring in Wilderness Leadership and Experiential Education (WLEE) and English at Brevard College. I’m originally from Roanoke, Va., and now study in Brevard, N.C. While my stomping grounds have changed, I still love getting outside whitewater kayaking, biking, climbing, and hiking. Bring trail mix on an adventure and we’ll be the best of friends. Find a Hellbender along the way and I’ll be impressed forever.

Shannon Larkin

My name is Shannon Larkin and I’m a senior studying Business Management and English Literature at Virginia Tech. I grew up playing along the banks of the James River in Richmond, Va. Since then, I have fallen in love with the Blue Ridge Mountains while living in Blacksburg. My life in the mountains gives me easy access to some of the best hiking and snowboarding—my favorite ways to go outside and play—on the East Coast. After graduation I hope to find a job that allows me to travel, write, and be outdoors.

Alexis Eliot

I grew up on a small farm in Ohio where being outside was a lifestyle, something I took for granted. My brother and I just didn’t have anything better to do. I would have never guessed back then that those early mornings spent crawling through the woods would propel me to become a major outdoor enthusiast. I thru-hiked the Appalachian Trail when I was eighteen. I was trying to create a precedent for my future choices, to set the bar high early and recognize what I expected of myself. I finished the AT in July and began studying Mechanical Engineering at Virginia Tech in August of the same year. As Head Trip Leader of the Virginia Tech Outdoor Club, I lead a lot of backpacking trips in the Blue Ridge Mountains and actively encourage new folks to try their hand in the great outdoors.

Elizabeth McIntosh
I hail from the aptly named town of Oakton, Va., (we’ve got a lot of trees for a suburban area). I’m a first year student at the University of Virginia and could not be happier about it. Although I am completely undecided about my major, UVA has a great liberal arts program that I’m taking full advantage of. My favorite place to be is outside, especially in the woods, and my favorite thing to do is walk, ideally through the woods. I cannot say I’m a very well-rounded outdoorswoman, so it is a goal of mine to expand my outdoors experience through a breadth of activities. A few of my other pastimes are reading, journaling, and spending quality time with my family. I’m thrilled to be able to work with a brand that will help me develop both my passions and professional skills.