Kelly Tanger: Writer on the Sidelines

READING, Pa. — The life of secretary Kelly Tanger proves that it is never too late to find your passion. She found hers through writing. Tanger writes for the Berks County Living magazine part time and works full time at Albright College as the secretary of Masters Hall. 

Tanger has been working at the college for six years and has lived in the Reading area since she was 8 years old. Her whole family seems to have either gone to school or worked at Albright. Her sister graduated from the school and her mother works in the residential life office. Her father used to be the director of food service. 

Tanger came to Albright for her general education credits, but also went to the Bradley Academy for the Visual Arts for interior design. The academy was later known as The Art Institute of York – Pennsylvania, and is now permanently closed, according to the Art Institutes’ website. 

Tanger’s father passed away during her time at art school, so she left for community college, where she got her associate degree as a medical secretary. She worked in the field for about seven years in three different offices, she explained. She last worked at an office at the Penn State Health St. Joseph Medical Center.

Tanger received her bachelor’s degree in communications from Southern New Hampshire University in May 2017. She explained that she really wanted to obtain her bachelor’s degree in something and the communications major was broad. “I figured I could find a job in any field,” she said. “And since I’ve expanded my passion for writing, that opens even more doors to use my degree.” 

Tanger explained that she chose SNHU because of the flexibility it offered her in taking classes. Although she did her general education credits at Albright, she explained that, at the time, she did not know what major to do and the school did not really have anything that appealed to her. At SNHU she liked that the school was both online and also had students who attended the campus for classes. “I really enjoyed the way things were taught online, the professors were amazing, the assistance was fantastic and I just thought the school had a very good online reputation,” she said. 

Tanger traveled to New Hampshire to walk at her graduation, even though she did her schooling online while working full time. The graduation ceremony included both on campus and online students. “If you couldn’t attend the graduation, a giant bus would drive to you and deliver your diploma,” she said with a laugh. 

Tanger said that she does photocopying, scanning and paperwork for the faculty, but the majority of her job is experience event related. She does not have a lot of student interaction, except for the student experience event monitors. 

Tanger started working with Berks County Living in April. In the beginning, she was an intern, writing short, small business profiles and calendar of events pieces for the issues. She has since begun working for them as a reporter and writing various articles given to her by the editor. These include five web exclusives for the digital version of the magazine online, along with her small business profiles. Her web exclusives have been about budgeting tips, things to do in Reading, as well as one about Drexel University medical students training at the Reading Hospital. They can all be found on the Berks County Living website. 

“It is awesome working at Berks County Living,” says Tanger. “I mainly write small business profiles. I interview either a director or general manager of a company and then do a small write-up about the business.” 

Tanger explained that she typically has pretty cool and relaxed interviews, with most being in person, but some over the phone. When she was first starting her profiles, it was very hard, she explained. She didn’t know what to say or what to ask. She had never interviewed someone before, so she relied on other people who had that experience. Then, as she got more comfortable, she started asking questions on what she would want to know. 

“It’s really awesome, and kind of terrifying at the same time, interviewing someone like the CEO,” Tanger shared. “I need to make a good impression on this person.” However, she explained that her interviewees are also nervous because they are the ones being interviewed. 

“It’s really exciting and it’s cool to get to know the person in charge,” Tanger explained. “You learn a lot of neat things and it’s also really nice to have and build that relationship with the person.” 

Tanger explained that because of all the people she gets to meet, the networking aspect of her job is really awesome. She has met the executive director of the GoggleWorks Center for the Arts, a leader from Bethany Children’s Home, the Literacy Council of Reading-Berks, and the owner of a small roadside stand of fresh produce, among others. 

Networking, not just for the magazine and the businesses she is profiling, but for herself as well, is challenging and fun at the same time, she says. “I can always use a good challenge,” she said. “It’s hard to get yourself out there. To meet these different people is awesome, but they can remember you.” 

Tanger said that it is amazing to see her work published. “People say you’re a writer but I don’t feel that way. I don’t have books out, but my name is in a magazine and I’m writing so that qualifies me as a writer.” 

People are seeing her work and it is such a rewarding feeling, she explained. “You put all of your own thought and creativity into those pieces and you want to make it so other people are drawn to them. To see them is such an accomplishment.” 

Tanger’s most recent article is about the Arts Festival Reading. It is exciting to her because the event will take place in the GoggleWorks, and she loves the GoggleWorks. She wrote about what people can expect at the festival. Conducting the interview proved challenging, because the GoggleWorks did not have all the details in place yet, she said. “I had to get very creative with my words to make the festival sound enticing to readers and really get them excited to go and check it out,” she said.

The article was published in the November issue of the magazine, and Tanger explained that she was in complete awe of the work she did. She received a two-page spread for the piece and she said it was the most exciting and accomplished feeling to see it. “That was probably the first time I was just shocked at the beautiful content and really considered myself a writer,” she said. “When I’m in the moment writing, I always underestimate my talent, but then when I see my work and read it published, I think wow! I am good at this.”

Tanger explained that the way the editor put her writing together with the photos provided by GoggleWorks was amazing. The piece was probably her favorite piece done so far, she said. “I am just so proud of that article.”

Tanger’s love of writing doesn’t stop at journalism. She also loves poetry. She explained that she had been writing poetry for as long as she could remember. She has participated in a couple of experience events at the college where she has read some of her pieces, she said. Other than those instances, she has not shared her poetry with others. 

“I’m not really a verbal communicator. I prefer writing,” she explained. “Writing is my way of communication.” Her poems come from her emotions — what she is feeling. They also come from nature, where they take more of a spiritual turn. 

Tanger is also interested in photography and has done some things on Instagram. Her poems also come to her based on the photos, which include nature shots. She hasn’t decided what she wants to do with photography. She says that she’ll likely keep it as a hobby to enjoy when she can. 

Tanger has thought of incorporating her poems with her photography. She is a Christian, and often she will take a photo in nature and be moved to write something about God, she said. “It’s pretty fascinating to have a created piece of work that I wasn’t even trying for but just started pouring out of me,” she explained.

Tanger would like to compile her poems and put them out to the world one day, as well as create a book of affirmations to encourage other people. 

Tanger would really love to get more of her writing out there and see more of her work published. She also wants to move to Nashville to be closer to her sister and nephew, as well as build her career as a journalist in Music City. She has been in talks with an editor in that area and is excited for this new step in her life.