Michalynn Castone is a senior communications major from Nazareth, Pa. This summer, Castone has worked as an intern for You Grow Gal Floral Design. Here, she has gotten hands on experience in the wedding industry and has expressed that her long-term goal is to become a wedding planner. While with You Grow Gal Floral Design, Castone has been working weddings, visiting venues to help build out preferred vendor relationships, and learning everything that happens behind the scenes to bring a couple's vision to life.
FDU athletics decided to learn more about her experience and what led her to her dream career field.
What inspired you to want to become a wedding planner and get into that career?
I have always loved the beauty of weddings and have always had a creative side. Going into college, I thought I would go to cosmetology school after graduation and eventually start my own business. As I gained more experience planning events, I realized my creativity could take a different route. This internship confirmed that wedding planning is the career I want to pursue.
What has been your biggest reward from this internship and what has been your biggest challenge/obstacle?
The biggest reward from this internship has been seeing all the hard work that goes into each wedding. After spending days preparing, watching the space transform and seeing the bride's reaction when she walks in makes it all worth it. Another rewarding part has been meeting so many people while touring venues. Being one of the youngest people in the room was intimidating at first, but everyone has been incredibly welcoming. Hearing venue managers and wedding professionals tell me that I am a delight to work with and that I am a great asset to the team has given me a lot of confidence as I begin my career in the wedding industry. The biggest challenge has been balancing everything. My days often begin with early morning field hockey training, whether it is lifting, conditioning, running, or stick work, followed by long days at the studio or wedding venues, while also planning the upcoming year as president of Morgan's Message. It has definitely tested my time management, but it has also shown me how much I can accomplish when I am passionate about what I am doing.
How have you leveraged skills you've learned from being a Division III college field hockey player into this internship and plan to use those beyond once you start your career?
Being a Division III student athlete has prepared me more than I ever realized. It has taught me discipline, communication, teamwork, and especially time management. Whether I am working alongside the team in the studio, communicating with venue managers, or balancing multiple weddings with my responsibilities as a student athlete and president of Morgan's Message, those skills have been valuable. I honestly think being a Division III student athlete is one of the hardest things I will ever do, so whenever someone asks if I can handle a busy schedule, I always think about my fall semester. Between practices, lifts, games, travel, classes, and everything else, I know I can manage whatever comes my way because I have already learned how to balance it all.
What's more fun, winning a field hockey game or planning a wedding? What's more rewarding?
Winning a field hockey game and planning a wedding are rewarding in completely different ways. There is nothing like winning a close field hockey game with your teammates after months of hard work, and those are memories I will always cherish. At the same time, helping create one of the happiest days of someone's life and seeing a couple's vision come together is incredibly rewarding. If I had to choose, I would say winning a field hockey game is more exciting in the moment, but helping create a wedding is rewarding in a different way because those memories will last with the couple forever.
What do you want people to ultimately learn and or gain from learning about your experience pursuing your passion?
I hope people learn that it is okay to follow what you are truly passionate about, even if it is different from what you originally planned. When I first started college, I thought I would choose a career based on what would make me the most money, and I pushed my creative side aside. Through planning events for Morgan's Message and this internship, I realized I am happiest when I am creating, whether that is organizing events, designing floral arrangements, or helping transform a wedding space. I have learned that success is not just about finding a job but finding something you genuinely enjoy. I know now that I would much rather spend my days doing something I love than sitting behind a desk wondering "what if."
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