Feature Story
Going Overseas–Henry Pullan (’26) Prepares for Diplomatic Internship to Belgium for The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints
This September, Henry Pullan (‘26) will gain valuable career experience as he travels to Brussels, Belgium as a European Union & Diplomatic Outreach Intern for The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints.
The EU and International Affairs Office of the Church works with the EU and other international organizations based in Europe to foster relationships, promote mutual understanding, and advocate for religious freedom, families, and humanitarian initiatives.
“I’m excited to learn how to talk with diplomats from different countries, learn more about political structure and how foreign governments function, and hopefully use that in the future to be able to help me create better relations between the United States and other countries,” Pullan said.
While in Belgium, Pullan will work with Church offices to host events, as well as attend European Parliament meetings and work with diplomats from various countries around the world. Having always loved history and politics, Pullan is passionate about fostering better relationships between the various nations in the world and advocating for religious freedom.
“I think that going into politics gives us the opportunity to try to make the world a better place,” said Pullan “Now obviously everyone has different ideas about how best to do that, but when people come together and are able to talk about things despite differences, it leads to a lot of growth.”
A political science major with a concentration in international relations, Pullan learned about the internship through his wife, Lacy, who found it listed on Southern Virginia University’s Launch Center portal to the Handshake website.
“I went to the Launch Center and worked with the director Tyler Orr. He helped me get the ball rolling and set up an interview for me. And it was just awesome,” said Pullan. “Tyler helped me adjust my resume and I wrote up a cover letter, showed it to Tyler, and he helped me make sure it looked okay.”
From Herriman, Utah, Pullan was drawn to a career in politics as he studied at Southern Virginia University, and he felt inspired to change directions from his initial goal of becoming an airline pilot. Since his shift, he has gained experience in education policy as an intern for the Virginia Institute for Public Policy.
“The more I studied politics, the less I felt like aviation was what I was supposed to do,” said Pullan. “And I felt like a personal revelation came to me that said, ‘You need to leave aviation behind and you need to focus on this. This is what you are supposed to do.’ And so I decided to put a pause on flight stuff and I’m working on politics now.”
Pullan will live in Brussels, Belgium for three months for the internship before returning to Southern Virginia University to complete his bachelor’s degree.