Fun in careers
How do Messiah students, alums and faculty have fun? They do it with purpose—with a zest for life in their jobs, their families, their communities and their hearts.
Tim Morgan ’04
Tim Morgan ’04 gets paid to talk. What does it take to build a voice acting career? Patience and perseverance.
In his senior year at Messiah, the communication major studied at the Los Angeles Film Studies Center in Los Angeles, California. He graduated and then married Deborah (Schultz) ’05. The couple moved to California in 2007 and spent the next decade on the West Coast.
Upon arrival, Morgan pursued a career in acting and comedy. After working as a substitute teacher and appearing on an episode of “Wipeout,” he found his niche, which combined his love for comedy, theatre and communication: voice acting.
Providing his voice to various projects, Morgan has played the role of an animated watermelon for Snapple and recorded more than 17,000 words for a text-to-speech system. Currently, he’s writing a pilot for a TV series he hopes to pitch later this year.
“What I do lends itself to fun regardless. I’m getting paid to talk, and that never gets old,” he said.
Voice acting is versatile, flexible and, if you have the right sound equipment, you can do it from anywhere in the world. So, after 10 years in L.A., the couple returned to their hometown in Camp Hill, near the Messiah campus, to raise their two children. They converted their basement into a home studio.
“Los Angeles will always be a part of my heart and my career, but we entered a season of life where family was most important,” said Morgan. “I give my wife so much credit for being the consistent income as a nurse. She provided our stability.”
In Pennsylvania, he’s now involved with the Harrisburg Improv Theatre and does on-camera work for Webpage FX, an internet-marketing service.
“I don’t think I’ll ever retire from voice acting,” said Morgan, “since I’m doing something I fundamentally love that will last.”
—Jake Miaczynski ’20
Zach Specht '13
Imagine wearing a press pass and watching your favorite NFL team from the sidelines—all season. You interview players, take photos, shoot video and interact with fans from all over the world. It’s just another day at the office for Zach Specht ’13, the social media editor for the Buffalo Bills.
A Buffalo, New York, native, he’s passionate about the team and his city. After graduating from Messiah in 2013 with a communication degree, he began working for the NHL’s Buffalo Sabres. By 2015, he’d switched from hockey to football to begin his career with the Bills.
“Social media is the mouthpiece of an organization,” explained Specht. “I love the diversity of events that I cover with social media. I cover tent pole events such as the NFL Combine, NFL draft and Pro Bowl. I’m fortunate to be surrounded by extremely talented individuals who collaborate and execute these events at the highest level.”
The job is fast-paced. Going to work each day means planning, creating and executing all content posted on the Buffalo Bills’ social media platforms—including creating new hashtags and memes while monitoring analytics to make sure the audience is engaged. Working closely with coaches and players, Specht is key to the team’s public and community relations.
And it’s fun, too. “The unpredictability of the NFL is one of the most challenging yet exciting elements of my position,” said Specht.
That unpredictability includes all the news generated from practices, wins and losses, roster changes and more. Everything that happens within the organization impacts what content Specht delivers to the fans.
Next time you watch a Bills game, keep an eye on the sidelines. You might just see a familiar face carrying an iPhone and a video camera. Then head over to Instagram and see how Specht reports on the game.
—Jake Miaczynski ’20