RAD Internship Program

Looking to launch your career as a young adult or teen? The Button Shoppe with Becka Makes Buttons, LLC is the perfect place to start! Our dedicated team is committed to helping you gain hands-on experience and real-world training, providing you with the skills you need to succeed. Partnered with the Chemeketa WORKS program through Chemeketa Community College, we offer guidance and support to help you achieve your career goals. Our unique Rad Internship Program offers 21st-century job skills in a manufacturing setting that is infused with creativity and heart. And the best part? Our entry-level interns are paid! Join us at the Button Shoppe and start your career journey today.

ALUMNI

Every youth I get the opportunity to work with helps to shape the Button Shoppe into a place that is better and safer for the community of Salem as a whole. Our youth hold the future in their hands and I see the internships as on opportunity for us all to learn from-and grow with-each other. They are learning job skills, but I am also learning about the challenges they face in an ever changing world which is equally important, creating a mutually beneficial experience of learning and teaching. The world is evolving, and if businesses are going to stay relevant, we need to remain teachable and adapt by creating environments that set our youth up for success as they move forward in making sense of the world around them.

This section highlights the amazing youth that I have been blessed to work with and some of the contributions they made that helped to shape the Button Shoppe.

YEP Internship Program, partnering with HOME Youth Services – 2022

15 Year old YEP Intern Spring 2022

This youth was my first hire, and my introduction to working with interns. They helped me transform the shoppe into a space that felt safer for neurodivergent types. They also helped to shape the safety plan and were responsible for a lot of the signage you see in the Button Shoppe today. In working together, they helped me to see ways that I can better serve my community that are still being implemented in the way I run the Button Shoppe today. They were consistently going above and beyond and volunteered their time to many community events outside of their regular work hours. I am confident that this youth will go on to do great things as they continue to grow and evolve into a young adult.

16 Year old YEP Intern Summer 2022

This youth showed me the value of patience and boundaries, and helped to develop a check-in system we now do before youth begin their shift. When you are working with interns-especially youth-where this is often their very first job, sometimes the transition between regular life and work life can be a lot to take on. Spending 5-10 minutes with the interns and giving them space to vent or ask questions before getting settled into their work day can make all the difference in the world in setting them up for success. In addition to being an asset at the Button Shoppe, they also spoke at various presentations and helped with events during the time of their internship. This youth serves on  a local board for youth and continues to work for their community. I am confident they will grow into a well-rounded individual and continue to do amazing things for their community as they grow into adulthood.

Chemeketa WORKS, partnering with Chemeketa Community College – 2023

The program is currently in motion, please come visit the Button Shoppe in Salem, OR to meet our current intern!