Blog

My name is Courtney and I have had the pleasure to work at Doddington this past summer. Primarily I have been working in the office taking orders and arranging them with the wonderful Elaine, but my job didn't stop there!

I have also scooped ice cream at the Kelso and Wooler shows; worked shifting ice cream in our big freezer; put up some new stock shelves; made lots of signs; ran deliveries to the Milk Bar; oh and can't forget getting well acquainted with Henry the Hoover! But most importantly, I have been writing many blogs during my time here. It's been fantastic to have such a varied job, you really are never bored whilst working at Doddington.

One of my favourite things that I have done this year is worked the shows. Although you left the day with 'scoopers elbow', it felt worth it seeing real life reactions to the ice cream that I sell daily over the phone. The Glendale Show was my favourite of the two, it was such a warm day just perfect for ice cream and we had queues out the tent! It felt good to get out of the office and see some familiar faces - a lovely atmosphere to be part of.

As the summer comes to an end, the main thing I leave Doddington with is a sense of its community. Never have I entered a job on my first day and been hugged at the door! The people here are beyond genuine, kind and welcoming. They take care of each other and of you, creating truly the best working environment I have ever been in. I just cant give enough praise to everyone here. However I do think there is one person who really deserves a little extra and that is Elaine, she ran the office by herself before I got here and I really don't know how she did it, there were times where we struggled between the both of us and yet she had to do it all by herself before me! I hold the opinion that without Elaine the dairy would descend into complete chaos!

Before I started working here, I believed Doddington Dairy Ice Cream was the best Ice Cream around, but since I've been here, I have only become more biased towards it. One thing that I didn't expect to learn about is Cheese. I didn't even realise Doddington sold as much cheese as it does, and I have learnt so much about the making and selling of it. So much work goes into running a dairy farm and producing high quality products like they do here - I still find it hard to fathom.

I study English Literature at Durham, and I have found writing these blogs highly enjoyable, puns 'n' all. I hope you have fun reading them - and the ones not yet published! Its been a pleasure working at Doddington, and I will miss the Doddington family that I have been so kindly welcomed into.

Happy scooping!

Courtney Power