Meet a Staffer: Dayle Duggins

Porcelain pet: Resting on Dayle Duggins’s desk is the very appropriately named Desk Cat, a porcelain cat she found at an antique store in 2011 and plans to keep with her until the end of time.

How long have you worked here?
Six months, kind of. My adventure with 417 Magazine officially began summer 2012 as an editorial intern.

Describe what you do at work day-to-day. 
First, I greet my precious porcelain desk cat. Then, the rest of my day is spent connecting 417 Magazine’s marketing and digital departments while incorporating a journalistic perspective. Most days, you can find me building microsites for promotions and contests, writing E-newsletters and planning events. I also get to write stories for the magazine every once in a while.

Describe something you worked on recently that you’re proud of.
We just wrapped up the Best of 417 Readers’ Choice Awards voting, and it was the first major promotion I was in charge of. I helped with digital, marketing and editorial aspects of the promotion, so it gave me the opportunity to combine all of my job responsibilities into one project. Now I make you wait until February to find out all the award winners!

What’s your favorite thing you’ve ever had to do for this job? 
Getting to create real multimedia journalism is something I love, and seeing my name on glossy paper every month makes it even better. If I had to pick one, eating my weight in ice cream for a story about a few frozen treat spots in 417-land was so delicious it hurt. 

What’s the weirdest thing you’ve ever had to do for this job? 
Getting to interview Jerry Springer and go to The Price is Right Live in Branson wasn’t necessarily weird, but it was pretty surreal. It’s hilarious that I got to chat with the guy whose show I secretly watched when I was younger. 

What’s your favorite piece of magazine lingo? 
The proof. I love getting a sneak peak of the magazine we’ve been working on and getting one last chance to double-check everything. 

What’s your favorite thing to eat that you can only find in 417-land? 
The cheese and onion enchilada from Maria’s Mexican Restaurant is truly what dreams are made of.

What would your co-workers say is your most distinguishing feature at work? 
My coworkers would be lost in a fog without my detective-like ability to track down anything their hearts desire from the depths of the Internet. My cohorts have put my almost embarrassingly good snooping skills to the test many times just to see what dirt I can dig up and, I must say, I’ve had some very satisfied customers.  

Do you have a nickname in the 417 Magazine office? 
Yes, several. Double D, Dayle-io, Da(y)le Gribble, Dayle D., DAD (my middle name is Anne).

What do you do in your free time?
I love playing soccer, scavenging for new music and going to concerts, working out and reading magazines. Anything outdoors is fine by me. 

What’s your dream vacation, and what five people would you take with you? 
I’d love to explore New Zealand. I would take five lucky family members with me to see the subtropical and mountainous landscapes and views that are so gorgeous they look fake. 

What celebrity would you most like to have coffee and conversation with? 
There are several people I have in mind, but because I love to laugh so much, I’d have to choose Joan Rivers. She cracks me up on Fashion Police, and I can only imagine what she’d have to say about me.

What would you do if you won $1million? 
Save it. Send my parents on a vacation.