2017 In Review

The breakdown of the year that was full of leaps into the unknown: 2016.

January:

• Attended 2nd Maker Faire Producers’ Summit in Miami
• Visited Moonlighter Makerspace in Miami
• Announced the 1st NYS Maker Summit

February:

• Gave TEDx Talk on the Maker Movement at TEDxAllendaleColumbia School
• Taught Wearables and Led Brainstorm Session at Rush Henrietta High School
• Judged BrickHack and WiCHacks at RIT
• Joined the inaugural NYS Fair S.T.E.A.M. area team
• Curated NYS Maker Summit Speakers & Marketed event
  • Continuous chats and phone calls with makers of all varieties from across NYS

March:

• Volunteered at FIRST Robotics Finger Lakes Regional (1st year as Co-Volunteer Coordinator, 10th year volunteering!)
• Ran NYS Maker Summit
  • 350 attendees in Albany, NY
  • 50+ speakers and panelists
  • Makers, Educators, Manufactures, Politicians, Makerspaces from all of NYS
  • Reception night before at Tech Valley Center of Gravity
  • Announced S.T.E.A.M area for NYS Fair
  • Well received!

April:

• Brought chandelier to Fast Forward Film Festival - 1st time as artist there
• Celebrated 1st year working at MAGIC at RIT
• Started NYS Maker Network Newsletter
• Marched at the Rochester March for Science and Science Expo
• Led NASA Space Apps Hackathon at RIT

May:

• Attended RedHat Summit in Boston
• Visited Artisan Asylum, one of the largest makerspaces in the US
• Participated as an exhibitor at Image RIT as staff for the 2nd time
• Tabled FOSS@MAGIC at OS Con in Austin
• Attended/Semi-Volunteered at Maker Faire Austin
• Spoke at STEM Exploration Days for second time
• Attended Buffalo Mini Maker Faire
• Celebrated third anniversary with Becca

June:

• Held Rochester Makerspace Roundtable for National Week of Making with local Makerspaces, VIPs, government officials and a few makers
• Attended Thomas & Rebecca Wedding in Schenectady

July:

• Bought a House in Penfield!
  • Spent 1 week painting and prepping house before moving in
• Celebrated birthday at the house for the first time
• Exhibited at 1st FLX Maker Fest - duct tape flowers
• Cut a couch in half as it we couldn’t get the couch out the door
• Attended NRS 50th Anniversary Celebration
• Becca and I attended our second Regional Burning Man (PortalBurn) - first time as artist
  • Ran the Tent of Colors - a tent covered in yarn that people could contribute more yarn and patterns to.
• Nominated for Digital Rochester GREAT Awards as Emerging Tech Leader

August:

• Gave talk about Makerspaces and the Maker Movement in in Old Forge within the Adirondacks
• House warming party
• Gave Open Source talk and tour of the Construct@RIT to RIT Women in Computing
• Experienced solar eclipse with Andrew Coy, former Senior Advisor of Making for the Obama Administration, while he was in Rochester
• Exhibited Big Face Boxes for the first time at the NYS Fair in Syracuse over Labor Day weekend
  • Massive crowds
  • Part of the S.T.E.A.M. area (co-chaired the area)
  • Promoted all Maker Faires in NYS

September:

• Started conversations with Strong National Museum of Play about possible Maker Workshops
• Digital Rochester GREAT Award Finalist Reception
• Ran the MAGIC Center’s First Annual ArTech Cre8-a-th0n
  • 10 categories, all with some level of humor mixed in
  • Partnered with 8 internal colleges, departments, and campus organizations
  • Custom built all 10 awards
  • Attended by ~20 students
• Won the Digital Rochester GREAT Awards for Emerging Tech Leader
• World Maker Faire in NYC
  • Gave talk on running outreach for the Rochester Mini Maker Faire at Maker Faire Producers Meetup
  • Nation of Makers Meetup - helped organize breakfast

October:

• Brought Big Face Boxes to:
  • WXXI event for teachers and a second event for families
  • RMSC After Dark
  • 2nd Annual Fredonia Mini Maker Faire
• Made PlayDough Pianos using Makey Makeys with Kindergarteners & 1st Graders at the 3rd Lima Primary Mini Maker Faire - 2nd time in a row
• Judged ROCGirlHacks, Rochester’s first all-girl youth hackathon
• Gave talk to LeBella on Makerspaces
• Haunted Laboratory at House with Family on Halloween

November:

• Brought Big Face Boxes to Science Teachers Association of New York State (STANYS) Conference
• Ran Election Night Election Hackathon at RIT
• Gave Introduction at RMSC Science on the Edge Speaker Series
• Barnes & Noble Maker Faire
  • Big Face Boxes and Duct Tape Flowers
• 4th Rochester Mini Maker Faire!
  • Major success!
  • 3.5k - 4k people in attendance
  • 130+ Makers
  • Heavy Meta, 19ft tall, 30ft long Fire Breathing Dragon in attendance on East Main Street!!!
  • More partners and news coverage of event
  • Added power tool racing
• Met Adam Savage at Brain Candy Live in Rochester!
• Becca and I hosted Thanksgiving for first time (17 of us)

December:

• Digital Rochester Round Table Meeting
• Started planning out possible large Cardboard project for Rochester (eventually was called off)
• MAGIC Breakfast at Liberty Hill (RIT President’s House)
• Included in City Magazine’s The Rochester 10 - annual feature by CITY Newspaper — turns the spotlight on some of the area’s hard-working background players