My Experience at MAAP

Hi, I’m Luke Gilmore, the senior marketing intern at Madison Automotive Apprentices. I’ve had the incredible privilege to work at MAAP for nearly 3 years now! It’s been such a wild ride! When I first started college, I never could have imagined where this journey would take me.

Landing the Internship

I began my college career at NOVA Community College until I decided I wanted to transfer schools for my sophomore year. During my search for a new school, I toured James Madison University and, by chance, stumbled across MAAP’s Instagram account. From the moment I saw it, I knew two things: I wanted to transfer to JMU, and I had to work at MAAP. After six months of emailing back and forth with Cole Scrogham, I finally received an email message that said, “We’re working on a position for you”. I can’t explain how happy I was to hear that.

When I first started, my tasks were very simple. I was assigned to organize files on an ancient MacBook. As time went on, my responsibilities grew significantly. Today, I manage MAAP’s social media, website, blog content, and monthly newsletters. It’s been amazing to see how much I’ve grown personally and professionally over the years.

Amelia Island Concours

One of my most unforgettable experiences from working at MAAP has been attending the Amelia Island Concours D’Elegance every year. The 2025 Concours was one to remember for sure. This year, we brought two truly special cars: a 1958 Porsche 550A Spyder and a one-off Porsche 356 Super 90 with a pre-production sunroof option. This was the first real 550A Spyder I have ever seen in person, so I was very excited when I heard we were showcasing one at Amelia Island Concours.

MAAP and Marketing

Beyond the excitement of amazing cars and incredible events, the most valuable lesson I’ve learned at MAAP is the importance of communication in the workplace. As a marketing intern, I had to constantly know what was going on in the shop so I could make content out of it. Marketing is all about asking the right questions and then telling a story from the answers you receive.

I love walking through the shop every day and getting to talk to my coworkers about the projects they’re working on. Every project is so unique, and each person’s approach to problem-solving is different. For instance, our engineering intern, Andrew Zirkle, is working on rebuilding a Porsche 911 engine, while Kai McCloskey is designing the interior for Michael Strahan’s old Porsche 911 SC. Watching how they tackle their challenge has taught me just how much creativity, skill, and collaboration it takes to bring these projects to life.

Looking back, I’m so grateful for every step of my journey at MAAP — from the first email to where I am today. Working at MAAP has been more than just a job; it’s been an unforgettable part of my college experience at JMU.