Tobyhanna Army Depot (TYAD) observed National Intern Day on Jul. 31 by shining a spotlight on depot employees who joined Team Tobyhanna through internship programs.

Nikki Collins joined Team Tobyhanna as part of the Pathways Program in the Fall of 2017 as a Budget Analyst in the Resource Management Directorate. She graduated from Misericordia University in May 2018 with bachelor’s degree in business administration and a minor in accounting. Additionally, she earned her Master of Business Administration degree from West Chester University in 2021.

At the beginning of her depot career Collins served in a part-time capacity, working up to three days a week while continuing to attend classes at Misericordia. Upon graduating, she was offered full-time employment and was able to seamlessly pick up where she left off.

Collins said that while she was in college, she was initially unaware of the opportunities that existed at TYAD.

“Considering the mission, people don’t often realize that administrative positions are needed on military installations. While in college, I thought it was primarily military personnel working on post. Once I realized that they offer internships to civilians in college, that was when I started to do the research into what the mission was here,” said Collins. “That’s when I thought ‘Oh wow, that has got to be a really great place to work.’ Just coming on-post for the interview amazed me at how expansive the depot was. It was unlike any other workplace I’ve seen.

Collins said that her job offers her a bit of everything, ensuring that each workday is unique and never gets stale.

“The one part that I really love about my job is that I have some routine functions, which helps to build a rapport working with the same people and I’m able to build some confidence in the work that I’m repeatedly doing, but now I’ve also been pulled on to some special teams and to work on new projects,” said Collins. “That helps keeps things fresh.”

As a member of the Program Budget and Execution Division, Collins said the main roles of the group she supports is to monitor key performance indicators, like revenue, expenses, and direct labor hours, and to calculate cost center rates. Recently, the team has taken on some extra roles, such as calculating machine costing rates. They also support TYAD’s Command Group by creating presentations containing statistical analysis. Aside from a stint as Command Intern in 2019, she has served as a member of the budget team for the entirety of her tenure.

With the mission of TYAD being so vast and varied, those completely new to the installation often go through an adjustment period before they understand the breadth of the operations. Collins said her time as an intern was crucial to helping her get up to speed when she was offered full-time employment.

“For those first six or seven months as an intern, I was getting acclimated to who the point people are for certain projects and getting familiar with some of the work. I think it took some of the pressure off when I started full time employment,” said Collins. “When you take classes, a lot of it is geared toward the private sector, because that’s most businesses out there. Coming here early gave me some valuable hands-on experience. My teammates also showed me a variety of things which helped me get a good idea of what projects interested me in relation to what goes on here.”

Although Collins’ time as an intern has long passed, she said she is still surprised to learn about some of the things that happen on the depot.

“Having been here for eight years this fall, it still amazes me learning what everybody does here. The longer you’re here and the more projects that you get involved in or the more articles you read, it’s incredible to learn what goes on here,” said Collins. “Tobyhanna’s size and how far reaching all its activities are just very impressive.”

Collins said she is grateful for her career at Tobyhanna as it has offered her healthy, stable, and meaningful employment in the area she calls home.

“It was always my plan to stay in Northeastern Pennsylvania, but I just didn’t know if that was going to be possible. My sisters had to relocate to Philadelphia, so I thought maybe I’d have to move into a bigger city, but it was just amazing to be able to stay local,” said Collins. “Tobyhanna did shape my future. I’ve been able to buy a home here so it’s great to stay close to the family, and I have had the opportunity to grow here professionally. There are so many opportunities if you go out and seek them.”

Having had family members who have served in the military, Collins said her favorite part about coming to work every day is supporting a mission she takes pride in.

“No matter where you go on the depot, you know that we are all collectively working towards the same mission of helping our warfighters get the repairs, equipment, and everything else that they need on time. That sense of pride, I don’t know that I would find that working somewhere else. I love that,” said Collins. “My team is also just the best. We work so incredibly well together. They care about me on a personal and professional level, and they make me want to come in and do well every day. We bounce ideas off each other and are just a well-oiled machine that works so well together.”

In her free time, Collins said she loves to be outside, work on her house, walk her dog, live an active lifestyle, and spend time with her family.

What started as a cooperative internship became the foundation for a career built on purpose and growth for UAS Program Manager Chris Volch.

The Student Temporary Experience Program, also called STEP, provided Volch the opportunity for on-the-job training while pursuing an associate’s degree in electronics from Luzerne County Community College. The internship turned into full-time employment in 2004, with Volch supporting Tobyhanna’s avionics missions as an electronics worker. For Volch, taking on a full-time role at the depot was more than just “getting a job” – it was the culmination of hard work. The position offered the chance to make an impact on his country, provided direct paths for both personal and professional transformation, and allowed him to build a meaningful life in the community.

Several years of working in the avionics production area gave Volch the experience and insight to pivot into a position as a management analyst in the Production Management Directorate. He says gaining institutional knowledge was key to success in this subsequent role.

“The advantage of coming up from the production area was that I already had a network and experience with the hands-on work. From that effort, I was able to use my experience to effectively support a different side of our mission.”

Learning from logisticians and other production support personnel further enhanced Volch’s skill set, leading him to his longest-held position as a logistics management specialist in the Strategic Initiatives Directorate. In this role, Volch transitions workload through the depot activation and pre-production planning processes. Over the years, he has successfully onboarded dozens of programs – most recently, the maintenance, repair, and overhaul capability for the critical MQ-9 Reaper unmanned aircraft system.

Passionate about personal evolution, Volch has pursued countless training courses and degree programs to grow his abilities. Since graduating from college, he’s gone on to complete a bachelor’s degree in project management, and will soon finish his master of business administration degree. He also earned his Project Management Professional certification, along with earning valuable leadership experience in the Practical Introduction to Supervising Employees program. Although he hasn’t served in uniform, a voluntary civilian deployment to Southwest Asia instilled Volch with a greater understanding of warfighter readiness needs – a skill critical to his position.

“I have experienced the ‘voice of the customer,’ which drives me to be a good steward of our taxpayer dollars and the equipment of our warfighters,” he said. “My broad experience helps me focus on comprehensive program success.”

Volch says he owes a lot to his early mentors, especially engineer Ken Stuccio—who had a knack for pushing people to level up.

“Ken was big on finishing what you start, and following through to completion,” Volch said. “He made sure I stayed motivated, and that mindset stuck with me. Ken had a unique way of communicating how well you were performing through his ‘creative’ rating system, and let’s just say it wasn’t great if you were a ‘1”. Volch’s colleagues can attest to the impact of Stuccio’s teachings, noting that he often uses the same philosophy when mentoring and coaching others.

For Volch, growth is more than just a goal – it’s a way to better serve the Tobyhanna mission and, more importantly, his family. The lessons he has learned in a 20+ year career have shaped his identity and made him a better husband to Holly and father to Jack. In his limited spare time, he notes that he strives to live life to the fullest.

“I love dragging my wife up mountains in the Adirondacks she swore she’d never climb—she pretends to hate it, but I know she secretly loves the view (and maybe the snacks). Playing hide and seek with my son Jack is basically Olympic-level at this point—he’s got hiding skills, but he can’t stop laughing so I find him every time. I’m all about bombing down trails on my mountain bike, paddling the Susquehanna like I’m on some epic expedition, and heading into the woods with my dad and uncles for some good ol’ hunting (and storytelling, of course),” he effused.

Like many others, electronics worker Joshua Littlejohn sought federal employment for more than “just a job.” The 2024 Johnson College graduate was looking for a dynamic career, and the Peckville native says he’s on the right track with Team Tobyhanna.

A lifelong passion for hands-on work propelled Littlejohn along a winding path, albeit one shaped by curiosity. His high school vocational-technical experiences provided mechanical and automotive repair knowledge, while early coursework at Johnson taught the fundamentals of diesel mechanics and heating, ventilation and air conditioning systems.

Littlejohn also gained technical experience working as a cable installer and interning for the Pennsylvania Department of Transportation. After earning an associate’s degree in computer information technology, Littlejohn was equipped with a unique set of skills that have proven beneficial in his current role supporting avionics missions at Tobyhanna Army Depot.

“Having experience working with different hardware systems has been helpful when it comes to working on circuit card assemblies and other pars of our workload,” he noted, adding that he values the opportunity to support Tobyhanna’s critical C5ISR readiness missions.

“I appreciate being part of something like Tobyhanna – it allows me to learn about different weapons systems, pursue opportunities, and support our warfighters.”

Community is vitally important to Littlejohn, who serves as a volunteer firefighter for the Blakely Hose Company alongside several family members. His penchant for giving back to others also earned him a position as an adjunct instructor at his alma mater, where he’ll help train the next generation of Johnson College students. He says the opportunity is exciting.

“I enjoy helping others reach their goals and grow. Seeing others evolve is a great feeling.”

Littlejohn’s other passion in life is music. A drummer since childhood, he often plays alongside his father, George, and attends as many concerts as he can with his girlfriend. His musical tastes run from The Beatles to the Moody Blues to Metallica and beyond. He says discovering new music is more than just a hobby for him – it’s an adventure.

Reflecting upon his time as an intern, Littlejohn noted that it was the people who shaped the experience.

“I have had a lot of mentors here at the depot, really, too many to mention. But I have to give a big thank you to Kevin Berry, Frank Gervasi, Mike Gerrity, Joe Weisgable and Mark Staples for helping me along the way,” he emphasized.