Every year, Brownsburg Parks supports its busy summer season and invests in workforce development through a robust internship program. Meet Kaitlin Fasbender, the 2026 Brownsburg Parks Events Intern. Kaitlin is a 2025 graduate of Drury University and is currently completing her master’s program in research psychology at the University of Indianapolis.
Kaitlin’s passion for sports and recreation stems from her love of volleyball, which she played all throughout college. She has years of experience in coaching, serving as a program instructor with the YMCA and assistant coach of a youth volleyball team. This internship with the Town of Brownsburg Parks recreation team created the perfect opportunity for Kaitlin to broaden her horizons and gain understanding of the operational and community relations aspects of event planning.
“I would say event days are definitely my favorite,” Kaitlin shares. “I think we have a great team here at the Parks Department, and it’s just really fun getting to collaborate and work with such great people. Getting to set up and see the community enjoy all of the events we put on is just really special.”
Internships with the parks department are designed to be hands-on and foster independence in the workplace. Event interns are tasked with designing, planning, and hosting their own event, and this year, Kaitlin is playing a major role in two events.
“We have a lack of young adult programming, especially in the area of fitness and well-being, so I really wanted to come up with something that gets the community involved and young people interested,” Kaitlin explains.
Her solution to this gap in programming? Kickin’ It in the ‘Burg, a free kickball tournament for young adults. The event is set for July 25 from 1-3 p.m. at Arbuckle Acres Park.
“Sports are great, but you want to keep it inclusive and not too niche,” Kaitlin explains. “Kickball is simple – we’ve played it growing up, so I think people will have a little experience, so it should be fun.”
Alongside this program, Kaitlin has collaborated with recreation coordinator Madison Laatz to create another fitness program for young adults: Pretty Fast, a women’s run club. The run club meets weekly on Tuesdays at 7 p.m. in Arbuckle Acres Park.
“Madison and I saw some of these young women’s run clubs, and we were like, ‘Oh this is cool. We could get this off the ground,’” says Kaitlin.
Putting on a new program takes more than just an idea, however. Kaitlin has created program plans to set goals, track costs, define the target audience, and determine metrics to evaluate program success.
An internship with the parks department is hard work, but Kaitlin thinks it’s worth it. “This internship has really prepared me for the planning and background preparation that goes on behind events, and once we got into the busy season, I’ve been getting a lot of hands-on experience with events themselves,” she shares.
Besides planning her own events, Kaitlin is hard at work this summer supporting the rest of the Brownsburg Parks recreation team. She spends her evenings working at the Brownsburg Farmers Market, Pints & Paddles, Movies in the Park, and whatever other fun events pop up!
