For the past couple of summers, I have gotten the opportunity to work at the admission booths at Mount Rushmore in the beautiful Black Hills of western South Dakota. Born and raised in the area, I was pretty sure that this job would be simple and a good money source while I was on summer break.
Working in the admission booths entering the park put me in the position to deal with people of all sorts. Tourists traveling the country and foreign visitors that could not speak a word of English, needless to say I knew this job was going to have its challenges. I underestimated just how much of a challenge it would be. So, here are a few things that I have learned about people and simply working at a National Monument.
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- Most People Do Not Want To Pay To See Mount Rushmore Mount Rushmore charges an $11 parking fee per vehicle of any size. I was shocked at just how many people refused to pay to go into the park to this national landmark. The interstate is located about an hour away from the monument so most people have to drive at least an hour out of the way to stop and see Mount Rushmore but then refuse to pay to go in? I just found this kind of disappointing. C'mon people. It's 11 bucks.
- It Is The Employees Fault When The Weather Is Bad Mount Rushmore is a rock. On the side of a mountain. Outside. Believe it or not, it might rain or get foggy. On foggy rainy days, I had many people come up and yell at me that the weather was bad. Until working at Mount Rushmore, I was unaware that I controlled the weather. It was my fault that it was foggy and the mountain was not visible. I actually had a woman seriously ask me why we did not just have big fans to blow away the fog.
- People Are Shocked That Mount Rushmore Is Open Year Round This is the Midwest ladies and gents. It is going to snow. “Well what do you do in the winter time?” Contrary to popular belief, it is not exactly easy to move an entire granite mountain into some giant shed somewhere, so we just let it sit out. All year long, crazy I know. When it snows, it's just another winter day in South Dakota. Drive slow and you will be fine.
- Many Americans Do Not Know The Presidents That Make Up Mount Rushmore Maybe it is just because I have lived in the area my whole life, but I was shocked at how little of the population knows which presidents are carved into the side of that mountain. No, Obama is not up there and neither is Benjamin Franklin. (A man who people believe was apparently president?) From left to right it is: George Washington, Thomas Jefferson, Theodore Roosevelt and Abraham Lincoln.
- There Is More To See At Mount Rushmore Than Just A Rock Although Mount Rushmore is “up in the mountains” and South Dakota is “in the middle of nowhere,” there are modern facilities up there. Many people came up and were surprised or amazed that we had electricity, modern plumbing and cell service. Along with the monument itself there is a gift shop, ice cream parlor, a restaurant, visitors center, sculpture studio, museums and hiking trails. So, no you do not need a horse to get up there and yes you will be able to relieve your bladder in something other than an outhouse.
Those are just a few of the many situations I would deal with on a daily basis at work. Some made me laugh, others made me extremely concerned for the future of our nation. Above all, millions of people from all over the world come to see one of our nations treasures and I am so glad I got to be a part of that.
