St. Ambrose University senior Loryn Heil ‘26 has no shortage of roles on campus. She’s a double major in business sales and marketing, competes in cross country and track, plays trombone in the Symphonic Band, serves as vice president of the Sales and Marketing Club, is a senior senator in the Student Government Association, and even works as an ambassador to the dean of the Patricia VanBruwaene College of Business.
But this year, one of her biggest commitments is off campus as a social media and marketing intern for the 2025 Milan Harvest Festival.
Heil’s path to the role began unexpectedly through her work with Ecogistics – a third-party logistics provider based in Moline, Illinois – where she became the company’s first social media intern from January to May 2025. During that time, she discovered that the owner of Ecogistics also oversees the Milan Harvest Festival.
The Milan Harvest Festival, revived in 2018 by Ecogistics owner Kevin Nolan after years of inactivity, is held at Camden Park in Milan, Illinois. The event features food trucks, live music, contests, and community activities. A new highlight this year is Battle of the Marching Bands, where area high school bands compete for a championship belt. A hallmark of the festival is giving back – proceeds support local schools and youth programs, from Little League Baseball to high school bowling.
“By the end of May, most of my internship was revolving around the Harvest Festival, because I just fell so deeply in love with it,” Heil said.
That passion turned into a summer opportunity, and now Heil continues to manage creative campaigns for the festival while balancing her busy campus life.
What made the internship especially meaningful for her was the chance to channel her creativity in new ways. She took on projects that allowed her to design graphics, develop themed content, and help shape new events – responsibilities that gave her the freedom to experiment and bring fresh ideas to the festival’s marketing.
One of Heil’s main goals in her internship is to connect the Milan Harvest Festival with college students, a demographic she said the event missed during its earlier years.
She has leaned into platforms like TikTok to reach her peers with relatable content. One video she created, showing how a hometown transforms “for one random weekend during the summer,” in Heil’s words, drew thousands of views and comments from students across the region.
“We had that video do very well. I think it’s at like 150,000 views and a ton of likes,” Heil said. “Just getting people to really engage with our content, that’s my main goal.”
Her responsibilities include creating themed weekly content, such as “Treat Tour Tuesday” to spotlight food trucks and “Tune Up Tuesday” to highlight live bands. This year, Heil is especially proud of designing the festival’s College Night, an 18+ event at Camden Park that will feature drink specials and a DJ set by St. Ambrose graduate Will Spriggs ‘24.
“I’m really hoping that we can get a lot of representation from St. Ambrose,” Heil said. “I was the one who came up with it and set it up.”
Along with its traditional attractions, the Milan Harvest Festival continues to add new experiences for visitors. This aligns with Heil’s goal to target a wide variety of audiences and attract as much attention as possible to the fairgrounds.
“This year, we’re doing a drone show. It’s a very new thing, and it’s like fireworks but better. It’s eco-friendly and it’s awesome,” Heil said.
Her experience at St. Ambrose played a role in preparing her for the internship. From the start of her first year on campus, Heil became active in the Professional Sales Team and the Sales and Marketing Club, where she competed at the national level. Those opportunities gave her valuable experience presenting in high-pressure settings and strengthened the confidence she now brings to her work with the festival.
“I feel like learning those interview skills and learning how to sell yourself in a way – like a speed sale elevator pitch or a role play – has been a big thing for me,” Heil said. “It’s really helped me learn how to do business and how to communicate.”
Those lessons, paired with support from professors and peers, gave her the foundation to thrive in a fast-paced marketing role where teamwork and adaptability are essential.
Through her internship, Heil said she’s gained confidence, especially in communication.
“I definitely was a very typical Gen Z kind of student before the internship. I wasn’t really one to get on the phone and call people,” she said. “But now I’m able to communicate and reach out whenever I need to.”
She also values the creative freedom she’s been given.
“I honestly think this internship has influenced me the most,” Heil said. “I really like the creativity that Kevin gives me. I have no limits. It’s endless. And he loves it, which is great.”
For Heil, the experience has been more than just a résumé builder – it's been a valuable chance to help explore her future.
“It’s taught me people skills and how to communicate, but also more about myself and what I want in a job when I graduate,” Heil said. “I think I want something that’s going to be leaning more toward the creative side, because that’s what I really love.”
