My first job: The money's coming in

Editor’s note: During the past month, The Press introduced you to several local students who are gaining work experience with their first jobs this summer. We thought it was a good time to check in on them and see what they were learning and how they were getting along.

LANDON CHANG

It’s been a summer to remember for Landon Chang.

The valet and bellman at The Coeur d’Alene Resort has had the opportunity to drive luxury vehicles and meet tourists from around the world.

“It has been a great experience,” he said. “You get to interact with people from everywhere out in the real world.”

Chang said all hands were on deck during the Fourth of July holiday, which crowds downtown with visitors. “Working on the Fourth was actually a lot of fun,” the 20-year-old said. “We made decent money for sure. We needed to have everyone working for the amount of people we had coming through. The customers were really patriotic and in a good mood.”

Decent money? The base pay is $3.85 per hour — but it’s not uncommon for valets who hustle to make $25 an hour in tips on a good day. Chang said he has a savings account to safeguard the money he’ll need for his expenses at North Texas University, where he is majoring in music education and saxophone performance. He hasn’t kept close tabs on how much money he’s made this summer. “I’m doing the best I can in terms of saving and making it work,” he said.

Chang said the biggest tip he’s earned was $20, though some co-workers have gotten more. “On the Fourth of July, one lady gave us cookies,” he said. “I love being tipped food, but money is the norm.”

Cody Smith, Chang’s supervisor, said Chang has done an excellent job. “He’s extremely competent,” Smith said. “With these jobs, you’re always moving and talking to people, so time goes by quickly — but that also makes the work fun.”

One perk of working at a world-class resort: Spotting celebrities. This year, downtown has been whispering about basketball great Michael Jordan and singer Usher, though Chang said he hasn’t spotted any, yet.

The most interesting thing he’s learned? Perspective.

“It’s cool to see the small town you grew up in is a hot spot for everyone else,” said Chang, a 2017 graduate of Coeur d’Alene Charter Academy. “There are also a lot of companies that meet at The Resort.”

Chang said guests staying at The Resort are generally in a good mood, so he hasn’t had a bad experience. “Honestly, I can’t tell you one,” he said. “If someone is rude, we’ll always take care of it. It’s never been an issue. We just try the best we can and give people the best customer service. People are really appreciative of what you’re doing.”

— Brian Walker

VERONIKA BERGLIN

Veronika Berglin wishes she could jump back to the beginning of summer.

Berglin, 16, just finished her sophomore year at Lakeland High School. She began the summer by working her first job at the Ice Creamery in Silverwood Theme Park. 

Her final shift was at the beginning of July.

“I enjoyed the people I worked with, but I have so much going on over the summer so I had to put in my two weeks’ [notice],” she said.

Berglin is an active at her church, Real Life Ministries. She went to Riverview Bible Camp in Washington, where she will return this week as a counselor for middle-schoolers.

“It’s just a time to connect with God and be around people who have the same values as me,” Berglin said.

She managed to save a little and is hoping to add a little cushion to her savings account for college. “I don’t want to be a broke college student,” Berglin said.

She took some other valuable lessons from her work experience, too. She learned that when others aren’t putting in enough effort she has to push forward and keep motivated.

“When people weren’t feeling like working, you had to put in more effort to get the job done because the day is going to go on with or without them,” Berglin said.

The former ice-cream scooper said she is going to miss everyone she worked with and could see herself returning to a job at the theme park when she’s a little less busy. 

— Julia Bennett

KADE PALMER

While many teens enjoy the ease and relaxation of a summer by the lake, Kade Palmer is working in perhaps the most frantic, fast-paced environment a kid will ever see.

“Work is going great,” the Triple Play Family Fun Park employee said about his first job, serving as lifeguard for Raptor Reef. “We’re making slow advancements to further our work experience.”

If you’ll remember, while most young people working their first jobs spend their money on the more frivolous and fleeting purchases of youth, Palmer is saving every dime he can from the breakneck speed of Triple Play. As he keeps watch over the waters of Raptor Reef, he doesn’t dream about what his money can buy, but rather what his money can deliver. That’s why, unlike virtually every American teen in history, Palmer is investing the bulk of his summer paychecks into CDs.

“[The CDs] are going great,” he said. “Slowly and surely, they’re gaining more money.”

Palmer isn’t just making money, apparently. The Coeur d’Alene High School graduate said he’s also earning life experience.

“[I’ve learned from this job] people are wild,” he said. “Also, some of the nicest people I’ve met.”

Still, his income is changing his perspective on life, particularly the more challenging realities of purchasing power.

“Yes,” Palmer said, “it does make me realize that everything costs money. And I mean everything, such as cell phone bills, car insurance, et cetera. The little things matter.”

Palmer has still found ways to donate some of his income to those in need from time to time, acts he finds rewarding, too.

“I love giving,” he said. “It makes me feel very good about why I’m doing it. And it [can] benefit the person greatly.”

The money he keeps will one day go toward police academy tuition, he hopes. Since his story was first published in The Press, one particular reader chose to reach out to Palmer and offer his services.

“I had a great one-on-one meeting with Kade,” Post Falls Police Chief Pat Knight said. “He is an exemplary young man. He has been on two prior ridealongs with the Post Falls Police Department and really enjoyed them both.”

Knight said Palmer’s focus on his future makes the recent graduate a source of community pride and a role model to the local kids he protects every day at Raptor Reef.

“Kade and I spoke for some time about his options moving forward,” Knight said, “knowing his end goal was to be a law enforcement officer in North Idaho. He is from the area and has no ambitions of leaving to find work. He has a real deep desire to help and serve those right here in Kootenai County. He shared some personal stories about himself [with me], and he has some family friends who are current law enforcement officers in this area. In my short time with Kade, I can see him being a real asset to any one of our departments in the near future. I hope he sticks with his dream.”

“I was able to meet with the Chief of Police for the City of Post Falls,” Palmer said. “He is extremely nice and wanted to help me achieve what I wanted out of a law enforcement career. He is helping me to this day. I’m very grateful for that opportunity.”

— Craig Northrup

McKENNA CRANFORD

Scheduling the job’s tasks, understanding the foibles of coworkers and doing what your manager tells you are three of the lessons McKenna Cranford has learned this summer. The 15-year-old is working not one but two jobs, one at the

Paul Bunyan Pak-Out drive-through in Coeur d’Alene, the other at Super 1 Foods.

“Paul Bunyan I like a little more than Super 1,” said the incoming Lake City High School junior, who splits about 20 hours between her two jobs each week. “At Super 1, you work all the time, there’s not really any breaks. Paul Bunyan is the complete opposite, you get all your work done and then you can hang out.”

She said she’s noticed how hard everyone works at both places, and how supervisors are good at keeping workers busy.

“At Super 1, everyone works pretty hard there,” she said. “If you’re not doing something the manager will come up to you and give you something to do, so everyone’s always doing something.”

McKenna’s manager at Paul Bunyan, Carla Harris, has worked with first-time employees for years. She enjoys helping them learn good work habits that that can take with them into their careers.

“It’s just little things,” Harris said. “They need to know they have to have their stuff done. It’s OK for their friends to stop and say hi, but they can’t hang out in the lobby forever.”

Some employees have to start at the beginning. “I asked one of them to get the Comet [cleanser], and they asked me what Comet was,” Harris said. “But for the most part, they get it.”

McKenna said she’s learned to keep all interactions with customers positive. “I smile all the time and laugh all the time, but that’s just part of my personality,” she said. “It helps a little bit.”

One annoying part of any job, McKenna has discovered, is coworkers who don’t complete their duties. And working the drive-through isn’t much fun when it’s raining. But she can deal with that if it helps her with her goals: Saving for college and getting an apartment when she turns 18.

“I think it would be really fun living by myself,” she said.

— Devin Weeks