Where is Our Intern Now?

We believe Darianna? Bridal & Tuxedo has the best staff.? They are kind, capable and take really good care of our brides and grooms.? Another excellent trait of our employees is that they are youthful, like many of our customers.

The owners of Darianna??Bridal & Tuxedo believe young people should shape the world they want to live in.? We rely heavily on our young staff to shape the culture and strategy of our business and we are always asking them for input.? Much of that input is successfully implemented into the business.

In January of 2021, we had a wonderful opportunity to hire an intern from Temple University 's Lew Klein College of Media and Communications.? The experience may have been more eye-opening to us than to him!

Daniel Pfeiffer "Dan", our intern, had no experience in retail, bridal, tuxedos or formal wear.? His background was firefighting and EMS.? It didn’t matter to us. We were excited to have him and have a fresh set of (young) eyes look at our business.

From Dan’s introduction to a blog he wrote on his impressions after only two weeks on the job, we could already see the impressive value of his contributions.

A story that we must tell our readers about Dan is an interesting one that he may not remember. When Dan was interning with us, we had an American bride-to-be living in South Korea with her South Korean fiance. This bride wanted to purchase her wedding dress from Darianna? Bridal & Tuxedo but was stranded in South Korea due to COVID-19 travel restrictions.

We arranged for a private appointment for this bride 7,000 miles away to experience looking at wedding dresses with her family.? Her family was based in Philadelphia and Bucks County.? We agreed on a day and time and the bride’s sister came with mom and a few friends to participate in an Instagram video call at our store. The bride’s sister tried on wedding dresses so that the bride could see what they looked like. It was an amazing experience and quite emotional when the bride said yes to her dress from South Korea!

Of course we had to post about this event showing the sister trying on bridal gowns while the bride can be seen on an iPhone screen 7,000 miles away!

While Dan was not involved with the appointment, he came up with the term, “from screen to dream”.? That was our post.? The post went viral!

Our lesson is, trust young people.? They are capable, motivated and clever!

Now let’s get to the true purpose of this article!

Almost three years after interning with us, we caught up with Dan Pfeiffer to ask him what he has been up to.? Enjoy this interview with him and please support your local students and young people!

Darianna: Tell us where you work now and what your responsibilities are?

Dan: ?Right now I am working at Pine Run Retirement Community as an Emergency Medical Technician/Security Officer but I have just accepted a Job offer with Warminster Township to be a full time firefighter.

Darianna:? What things that you learned as a marketing intern at Darianna? Bridal & Tuxedo that you still use today in your current position?

Dan:? Darianna showed me a lot but the one thing that has benefitted me constantly is the lesson I learned to always be competitive and not to back down from challenges. I also learned a lot on how social media can be used to expand your brand and connect with others who can help you do so.

Darianna:? What is the most memorable thing you did as an intern at Darianna? Bridal & Tuxedo?

Dan:? The most memorable thing I did as an Intern was have a trunk show with my friends from Temple University Emergency Medical Services. I never thought to combine the two but it worked out very well.

Editor’s Note: see photos and full blog on this very successful event that Dan made happen with his colleagues from Temple University EMS.

Darianna: What do you miss about working at Darianna? Bridal & Tuxedo?

Dan:? What I miss about interning at Darianna is the support I got when I wrote or posted something either by the team themselves or by the followers. Validation was never few or far between and my work always felt appreciated.

Darianna:? As a college student, you managed the EMS unit at Temple University.? Tell us what that was like.

Dan:? I directed the EMS unit at Temple University in the beginning of the COVID-19 outbreak.? It was challenging not only balancing the regular (emergency) calls but also navigating a new infectious environment and managing the schedule to provide the same service we had in previous years.

Darianna:? Tell us about your involvement in the local firehouses and your responsibilities?

Dan:? I am a Captain at my local firehouse, Plumsteadville Volunteer Fire Company, in Plumsteadville PA, but I also have many other responsibilities such as being the bylaws chair, running drills for the company, and helping with various events and fundraisers.

Darianna:? You were recently published in Firehouse Magazine .? What inspired you to write that article?

Dan: ?The article I wrote for Firehouse Magazine simply started as a writing prompt and I wanted to prove to myself that a (video) game I loved could be used in the field I love. I never thought to submit it until about 3 months or so after having written it and I thought “What the hell”.? So I submitted it and low and behold it got published.? It is by far one of my most proud achievements.

Darianna:? You recently traveled overseas for the first time.? Tell us where you went and first your impressions ?

Dan:? I did travel overseas to the UK and to Denmark!? It was an incredible experience and one of my most memorable. I went with a group of my friends from middle school who I also happen to play DND (Dungeons & Dragons) with. Traveling overseas really made me see just how big the world is compared to my little part in it.

Darianna:? Which foreign destination is on your list next and why?

Dan:? The next destination on my list is Italy.? If you know anything about firefighters, then you know we love to eat and not a single place in the world can beat the image in my head of the perfect plate of pasta.? My girlfriend and I both love Italian food and we both want to experience the uniqueness of the country from the canals in Venice to the streets of Rome.

Darianna:? What does the future hold for you; where would you like to see yourself in 5 years?

Dan:? The next five years I see myself fully in my Firefighter role both paid and volunteer.? Hopefully I can learn as much as I can from my teammates and use that to help teach newer firefighters in the future. A journey of self improvement and education is what I have my eyes set on. ? Also, maybe a new truck.? We will see.

Darianna:? With a few years of work experience outside of University, what advice would you give your younger self while attending Temple University?

Dan:? I think everyone says something like this but I would tell my younger self to slow down.? I think it's natural for us when we are young to want to grow up quicker but we miss out on fully experiencing our younger years.? Of course I say that at 24 but I would have loved to spend a little more time hanging around campus when I could have and taking the time to enjoy the weather and other little things like that.

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