Brittni Shenefield:
We have a smart thermostat, but we don't even, it's not connected to anything.

Andrea Melton:
But it's there?

Brittni Shenefield:
Yeah. We can turn the heat up and down. At one point when we first moved in, we thought it was so cool and had it connected to our phones. Then, it dwindled out. We were like, "This is a lot of work."

Abby Spurlin:
I just like to walk in a room and tell Alexa to turn it on.

Brittni Shenefield:
I'm sick of my Alexa. She let my daughter order a kid's camera. She's grounded.

Andrea Melton:
Oh, my goodness.

Brittni Shenefield:
Not the daughter, but Alexa.

Abby Spurlin:
I love it.

Andrea Melton:
Welcome to Connected Conversations, the official podcast of Kosciusko Connect. Kosciusko Connect is a subsidiary of Kosciusko REMC. Since 2021, we have been providing lightning-fast, reliable fiber to the home internet service to rural portions of Northern Indiana. On Connected Conversations, we talk about fiber internet, technology, community, and how to navigate the digital world in which we live. I'm your host, Andrea Melton. Thank you for connecting with us today.
Thank you for joining us today for this very special edition of Connected Conversations. I am super excited to be able to introduce all of you listeners to the podcast, to our two newest Kosciusko Connect employees. We are so happy to have them here in the studio today. I have Abby Spurlin and Brittni Shenefield. Is that how you correctly pronounce your names, ladies? I guess first.

Brittni Shenefield:
Yes.

Abby Spurlin:
You nailed it.

Brittni Shenefield:
Absolutely.

Andrea Melton:
Awesome. Abby and Brittni, thank you so much for coming in.

Abby Spurlin:
Thank you for having us.

Brittni Shenefield:
We are so happy to be here.

Andrea Melton:
I really appreciate your teammates for allowing you to step away from your work and your desk to come be on our podcast. So, that's really cool. We're just going to get to know you, and then play a little game. So, we'll see how this goes. Abby, let's start with you. Can you just tell me a little bit about yourself? What brought you to Connect and about the role, your job here at Kosciusko Connect?

Abby Spurlin:
I have a friend that works on the REMC side, and she had let me know that there was going to be a position opening. I had heard nothing but good things about this company. It seemed like a super great opportunity, so I applied and I obviously got hired. Absolutely, love it. Love who I work with. I think we have a super good team. I'm just loving what I'm learning, and I feel like I'm getting a little bit better every day.

Andrea Melton:
Wonderful. I love to hear that. Tell me, what exactly is your job title?

Abby Spurlin:
Yes. I'm sorry.

Andrea Melton:
No. It's okay.

Abby Spurlin:
I am customer service and then also dispatch. It's split job.

Brittni Shenefield:
Half.

Abby Spurlin:
Half-and-half.

Andrea Melton:
Awesome. Brittni, what about you? What brought you to Connect? You came just a few weeks before Abby, I think. Timing, something like that.

Brittni Shenefield:
I think a couple of months.

Andrea Melton:
Time flies around here.

Brittni Shenefield:
Yes. No, I agree.

Abby Spurlin:
100%.

Brittni Shenefield:
I agree. I'm like, "When did I start here?" No. So, I was a dispatcher for the county for four and a half years. Then I left that, took a different position within the county. I just missed being on the phone. I just missed talking to people, helping people. So when this position came up and it was dispatcher/customer service, I was like, "That's literally what I want to do." So, I applied. Same thing, I ended up getting the job.
I had applied here a couple of years ago as well, and I didn't get the job at that time, unfortunately. I am grateful to be here and in the position I am now because I do love it. Like she said, "I think we have a great team."

Abby Spurlin:
Yeah.

Brittni Shenefield:
I think it's all coming together very well, and I couldn't be any more grateful to work for such a great company.

Andrea Melton:
Awesome. I love to hear that. I love that you applied before and then tried again because it's just an example that persistence pays off. If you want something, you keep going for it.

Brittni Shenefield:
Yes.

Andrea Melton:
It might work out. So, you guys have the same job title. Do you do the same types of work or do you have different responsibility? Are you pretty much on the same page?

Brittni Shenefield:
Yup. So, we're basically on the same page for everything. We're still in the training process of couple of things. By the time we're all done training, we should each know the same thing. So that way if one of us isn't here, we can just split things up a little bit.

Abby Spurlin:
I think right now while we're training, I'm focusing on certain things. She's focusing on certain things. We are honestly getting a schedule together so that on this week, here's what I'm going to do. That week she's doing different things, but we're both doing the same job.

Andrea Melton:
Wonderful. So, really working together to execute that.

Brittni Shenefield:
Yes.

Andrea Melton:
So Abby, did you know a lot about internet technology coming into Connect or was there a learning curve with all this digital technology?

Abby Spurlin:
So I had worked in IT for 11 years, 12 years in different capacities. I had worked at Pierceton Elementary, and I was the technology teacher back when they would have a class to teach the kids about computers.

Andrea Melton:
Oh, cool.

Abby Spurlin:
Then I ended up more on the administrative office side of tech at the high school, and I became the device manager. Then, I was the IT field manager. So, I do have some background in it. What I've learned is it doesn't matter where you go, tech works in a different way-

Andrea Melton:
Yes.

Abby Spurlin:
... at every company you work for. So even though I have this background, it's not necessarily the same as here.

Andrea Melton:
Right.

Abby Spurlin:
It's been neat to learn how they do it here. They have a really good system, really good.

Andrea Melton:
Cool. What about you? What would you say, Brittni, your level of technological knowledge coming in?

Brittni Shenefield:
Being in the younger generation, I feel like we do more techie stuff. In my previous job, they work on lots of computer screens and we used radio system instead. So this tech world like she said is completely different. Everybody here is just so knowledgeable when it comes to the tech stuff that it is just a whole new world. That it is exciting to learn about. It is kind of nerdy, but it is fun still.

Abby Spurlin:
I agree.

Andrea Melton:
It's still fun. I've been here about a year and a half, I feel like I knew nothing when I came. I probably would've been like, "Oh yeah, I know a bit about fiber internet." Not really, I knew.

Brittni Shenefield:
No.

Andrea Melton:
I'm still learning so much every day.

Abby Spurlin:
Agree.

Andrea Melton:
I learn so much from my coworkers.

Brittni Shenefield:
Oh, it's just crazy how it all works. The fiber internet is just-

Abby Spurlin:
Wild.

Brittni Shenefield:
... it is lightning fast.

Andrea Melton:
It's the future. It is.

Brittni Shenefield:
Yes, it is.

Andrea Melton:
Any standout moments yet where you were able to solve a specific problem for someone or learn something especially interesting? Does anything stand out in your minds? You're kind of looking at each other like, "Well, I don't know."

Abby Spurlin:
For me being so new, it is literally somebody showing me every day how to fix my mistakes. So those are my standout moments, is learning how to fix my own mistakes and having a team that just backs me up 100%. I love that.

Brittni Shenefield:
All of our mistakes are fixable.

Abby Spurlin:
I'm learning that.

Brittni Shenefield:
So anything that gets messed up can be fixed, which is something that I did not come from previously. If you make a mistake, it's life or death.

Abby Spurlin:
Right.

Brittni Shenefield:
Here, it's fixable. It's so hard for me to unlearn that, that it's going to be okay. Everybody's fine.

Abby Spurlin:
Yes.

Brittni Shenefield:
The internet will be fixed. It's okay.

Abby Spurlin:
Yes.

Andrea Melton:
The internet is not life or death-

Abby Spurlin:
No.

Brittni Shenefield:
Correct, yes.

Andrea Melton:
... in a general sense.

Brittni Shenefield:
Correct.

Abby Spurlin:
Yes.

Brittni Shenefield:
We need the internet.

Andrea Melton:
Now that you've been here a little while, what is the best part of your job?

Abby Spurlin:
The atmosphere and the culture and climate in this place is off the charts. I have worked at lots of different places, and all I can say is every day I am blown away by how kind, how sweet, how helpful everyone is here, and how they just want everyone to be successful. That is rare. It is so rare.

Andrea Melton:
Oh, I love that. Great answer. What about you, Brittni?

Brittni Shenefield:
Oh, I 100% back that up. I say that all the time. The whole environment here, it's clean. Everybody's so positive. The work environment is so healthy. There's no toxicness at all. Everybody is just so nice. It doesn't matter who you go to. Even if they don't know the answer, they will walk around with you and help you find the answer until you do.
Even if you just seem like you're having a bad day, hugs are a big thing around here, which I'm not used to whatsoever. It's so nice to be around females and just all the men here too. Everybody's just so positive, and it's just a very healthy environment to be around.

Andrea Melton:
I love to hear that. I'm sure other folks in the organization who are listening will be very happy to hear that too. I agree. I look forward to coming to work, and I think-

Brittni Shenefield:
Yes.

Andrea Melton:
... it's a really unique work family. It's nice to be able to express that as a family. Now, I thought we would play a little this or that. Well, some of them are like the this or that. We're going to do a tech edition and just find out a little bit more about. We're going to go rapid fire a little bit, but you'll both answer. So, let's start. Abby, Apple or Android?

Abby Spurlin:
Android.

Andrea Melton:
What about you, Brittni?

Brittni Shenefield:
Apple.

Andrea Melton:
I'm in Android here. Okay. Abby, what is your favorite social media platform?

Abby Spurlin:
TikTok.

Andrea Melton:
Really?

Abby Spurlin:
Love it.

Andrea Melton:
I'm one of those people who's not on TikTok. Not that I'd never see a TikTok video-

Abby Spurlin:
Right.

Andrea Melton:
... because you see them, but I haven't.

Abby Spurlin:
Love it.

Andrea Melton:
TikTok. Okay.

Brittni Shenefield:
Pinterest.

Andrea Melton:
Pinterest, oh.

Brittni Shenefield:
I love Pinterest.

Abby Spurlin:
It's a good one.

Brittni Shenefield:
It's the social media without the media part.

Abby Spurlin:
Yeah, I love it.

Andrea Melton:
I love. That's a great description. Okay. Brittni, Mac or PC?

Brittni Shenefield:
PC.

Abby Spurlin:
Mac.

Andrea Melton:
Oh.

Abby Spurlin:
Right?

Andrea Melton:
Interesting. We're PC here for the most part in-house.

Abby Spurlin:
Which is fine, but I love Mac.

Andrea Melton:
I think there might be some Mac. Okay. What is the one app that you cannot live without?

Abby Spurlin:
TikTok.

Andrea Melton:
TikTok for the win. Brittni what about you?

Abby Spurlin:
Or Snapchat?

Brittni Shenefield:
Mine's probably Pinterest and TikTok. I've tried to delete TikTok multiple times and it just keeps coming back.

Abby Spurlin:
That's no way to live.

Brittni Shenefield:
I know.

Andrea Melton:
On your cell phone, do you use dark mode or light mode?

Abby Spurlin:
Dark mode.

Brittni Shenefield:
I use light mode during the day, and then it sets to dark mode at a certain time.

Andrea Melton:
You change those. So you dove into those settings and set it up...

Brittni Shenefield:
Yup. I had even turned the yellow night.

Abby Spurlin:
Mine does do that, but I'm dark mode 24/7.

Brittni Shenefield:
Mine's half-and-half.

Andrea Melton:
Brittni, which streaming service do you watch the most?

Brittni Shenefield:
Netflix. We use Netflix the most.

Abby Spurlin:
Discovery Plus.

Andrea Melton:
Oh.

Brittni Shenefield:
That's a good one.

Andrea Melton:
You have a favorite show on there?

Abby Spurlin:
It's trash. It's so trash. 90 Day Fiance.

Brittni Shenefield:
You said Discovery Plus. I don't know, maybe The Lost Kingdom.

Andrea Melton:
I had National Geographic stuff going through my head.

Abby Spurlin:
Nope. I go right to the trash, but I also love all the home improvement things too.

Brittni Shenefield:
Yes.

Andrea Melton:
Awesome. What is your favorite tech gadget of all time, Abby?

Abby Spurlin:
I would say a cell phone.

Brittni Shenefield:
Most definitely, my phone. You can do so many things.

Andrea Melton:
Digital books, physical books, or audiobooks?

Brittni Shenefield:
Audio. I like to listen to stuff on my way into work and things.

Andrea Melton:
Cool.

Abby Spurlin:
Physical. It's the smell and it's the turning of those pages. I'm 100% physical.

Andrea Melton:
I'm with you on that one. I love the paper and the dust. All of it, give it to me.

Abby Spurlin:
Yeah, the dust.

Andrea Melton:
Okay.

Abby Spurlin:
That's what it is.

Andrea Melton:
Some of the books at home are a little dusty. I've been busy. What is your favorite emoji?

Abby Spurlin:
The one with the heart eyes.

Brittni Shenefield:
Mine's probably the rolling eyes.

Andrea Melton:
Rolling, oh that's a good one.

Abby Spurlin:
Love that one.

Andrea Melton:
Online shopping or in-store shopping?

Abby Spurlin:
Online.

Brittni Shenefield:
Neither.

Abby Spurlin:
Yeah, I don't like either one, but if I can-

Brittni Shenefield:
I hate shopping.

Abby Spurlin:
... do it, online.

Brittni Shenefield:
I would probably do it online too.

Abby Spurlin:
Not dealing with all the people.

Andrea Melton:
Okay. We like the people here, but not necessarily out in the work.

Abby Spurlin:
Not necessarily there.

Andrea Melton:
Smart home or traditional home?

Abby Spurlin:
Smart, traditional.

Brittni Shenefield:
I've seen how many devices she has connected to her home.

Andrea Melton:
Do you have a number? Do you have a count?

Abby Spurlin:
It was 16 yesterday.

Brittni Shenefield:
I probably have four or five.
We just don't. We have a smart thermostat, but we don't even, it's not connected to anything.

Andrea Melton:
But it's there?

Brittni Shenefield:
Yeah. We can turn the heat up and down. At one point when we first moved in, we thought it was so cool and had it connected to our phones. Then, it dwindled out. We were like, "This is a lot of work."

Abby Spurlin:
I just like to walk in a room and tell Alexa to turn it on.

Brittni Shenefield:
I'm sick of my Alexa. She let my daughter order a kid's camera. She's grounded.

Andrea Melton:
Oh, my goodness.

Brittni Shenefield:
Not the daughter, but Alexa.

Abby Spurlin:
I love it.

Andrea Melton:
Well, this has been awesome. I feel like I've gotten to know you both a little bit better, and I'm sure the listeners have too. Thank you Abby and Brittni for coming in. You've been here a while now, but welcome to Connect. We're glad you're here. I'm glad you're enjoying our company and your roles, and thanks for coming on the podcast.

Abby Spurlin:
Thanks for having us.

Brittni Shenefield:
We love these great things that the company has as well. It just blows my mind-

Abby Spurlin:
Yes.

Brittni Shenefield:
... how close everybody is and just these great things as well that we're allowed to do and participate in. It's nice. I enjoy it.

Andrea Melton:
Wonderful.

Brittni Shenefield:
Thank you.

Andrea Melton:
Wonderful sentiments. Thank you ladies, and I'll let you get back to work. Have a great day.

Brittni Shenefield:
Thank you.

Abby Spurlin:
You as well.

Andrea Melton:
You've been listening to Connected Conversations, the official podcast of Kosciusko Connect. From all of us at Kosciusko Connect, thank you for connecting with us today.