Meet Amy!

Name: Amy Van Auker 

Hometown: Springfield, OH

Age: 22 years old

Major: Speech and Hearing Science

Favorite Color: Purple

Favorite Candy: Peanut M&Ms

One interesting fact about yourself:

I once had a goldfish (won at a carnival) that lived for 12 years!

If you could have dinner with one person, alive or dead, who

would it be and why?

I would love to have dinner with Bob Dylan.  He’s such a great songwriter and I’m sure he has some great stories from over the years.

It is a lazy Sunday, how would you spend your day?

Well, I am currently obsessed with Mad Men, so I’d probably watch a few episodes in the day.  Also, my roommates and I like to hang out on our porch when it’s warm outside, so I would enjoy spending much of my Sunday there, talking or reading.

What is the funniest comment you have heard from a child

while working for SMS?

I was sitting for a 4-year-old boy, and he told me right away that they had had other sitters who were also named Amy.  I told him that we would have to figure out a way for him to differentiate between us, so he wouldn’t get us confused.  He suggested that he call me “Stilts” because I am so tall I “almost hit [my] head on the ceiling.”  I don’t know about the ceiling, but I am tall enough that it works!

When you were a kid growing up, what did you want to be?

I don’t remember having a dream job when I was little, though I distinctly remember being about 4 years old and telling a group of my friends that I wanted to be a bird.  Even though some of them were older, I don’t think they had the heart to tell me it wasn’t going to happen.

If you were stranded on a desert island, and could pick three

items, what would they be?

My laptop, my guitar, and the complete works of Jane Austen.

What is the funniest memory from your childhood babysitter?

When my sister and I were young we used to make videos with our babysitter.  These could include anything from music videos and commercials to fake documentaries and mock soap operas.  They were hilarious, and my family loves to watch them to this day.

What has been your most memorable experience while

working with SMS?

I sat for a family that were big Buckeye fans (I’m sure we all have), and their 2-year-old son was enamored with the marching band’s pregame show.  He would wave a stick in the air to pretend that he was the drum major and had us all march behind him while we sang “Fight the Team” or “Hang on Sloopy.”