How FIRST has impacted my life!

To most people in the world I’m just that weird, awkwardly funny long-haired guy, the one they call Jake. I might not be the most attractive, the smartest, or the best at anything. I can, however, say one thing with absolute certainty: FIRST is an organization which played a key part in shaping my life.

I first jumped into FIRST at age 9, attending an introductory FLL summer camp. From day one I was hooked. It was funny, for a kid who hated building with Legos I sure got a thrill from creating Lego robots. Now don’t get me wrong, I didn’t actually snap any Legos together, but I realized how much more there was to the world of engineering. Programming, research, and the ultimate keys of teamwork and gracious professionalism coupled with a passion for Science and Technology is what drove my love for FIRST.

After 5 years of participating in FLL I couldn’t fight the bug, science was my passion. I quickly moved and participated in both FTC and FRC. I’m now a junior participating in FRC and enjoying the ride. One of the most important parts of FIRST is simply how energetic the competitions are. I’ve always been a little jittery, to say the least, but after being the team mentor during my time here I’ve felt enjoyable exhaustion. The drive and effort shown by these kids is incredible, I have no doubt we’re going to be the driving force behind the next technological breakthroughs.

I have since spread that passion for Science and technology on to other children. I have mentored an FLL team every year since I have aged out of the program. I also mentor a JFLL team at a local elementary school weekly. The changes I have seen in these kids are impressive. They quickly grasp basic engineering and teamwork principles and continually strive to improve. FIRST gives them a place to compete to see who can become the best engineer AND the best team player, a competition in which the world wins.
I don’t know where I would be without FIRST. It gave me purpose, drive, a passion for science, and ultimately helped me decide on my major: Computer Programming and Computer Science. But more important than any of that, it gave me a place to learn and implement real-world method for professional businesses.



--Jake