Staff Spotlight – Helping Pay for Higher Education

It’s our friendly and knowledgeable staff that helps make your whitewater rafting adventure a  truly great experience, so we’d like you to meet one of our best, Cory Pratt. Cory has worked at Rafting in the Smokies (RITS) River Outpost in Hartford for the past five seasons while he’s earned money to complete his college degree. He recently received a Bachelor of Arts in Communications (concentration in Television and Film) from East Tennessee State University.

Being a native of beautiful Cocke County, TN, Cory starting guiding for RITS while a high school senior. He found the job so much fun and so rewarding that he continued to work there each season while on summer break. “Rafting in the Smokies is a very enriching place to work. We get guests from all over the globe; South Africa, New Zealand, Australia, Canada, India, and many others,” says Cory, “it’s a joy to greet them and share some East Tennessee culture while learning about their homelands as well.”

Cory is grateful to Rafting in the Smokies for creating a great work environment. “We all consider one another a big extended family,” he says, “I’m thankful to have that stability in my life, knowing that I can work hard and have fun in the summer so I can better myself for the future.”

After this season, Cory is planning to further his education while studying for his Masters of Fine Art at Savannah College of Art and Design with the hopes of one day teaching film-making at the university level. All of us at Rafting in the Smokies are so proud of Cory’s achievement and look forward to continuing to support him in the advancement of his education.

If you know of someone with a passion for the outdoors and would like to experience a summer of working on the beautiful Pigeon River, check out our Employment Page on our website for more information.