[George A.]

Here's my two cents. I graduated last year, am once the school year started I immediately missed FIRST. This was mainly due to the fact that in HS there was always something to do.

I'm currently attending Montclair State University (on a FIRST scholarship, so make sure you apply), and I commute. Since I commute that leaves me at home with the chance to volunteer. I'm helped out my HS team (11) and I offered to mentor team 11's sister team (1302) but due to scheduling conflicts i could only make meetings once in a blue moon.

My advice? Volunteer. I signed up through VIMS and got in contact with the volunteeer coordintator for NJ and he hooked me up with play by play announcer. After I did that Tony Paxton (volunteer coordinator for NYC Regional) liked it he asked me to be backup MC for NYC, which I did this past week. Also Don Bowers and Randy Schaeffer like my play-by-play at NJ so much that they personally reccomended me to Lynn Casey (volunteer coordinator for Nationals) and asked if she could get me a job. As of now I'm real time scorekeeper for one of the fields, but I'm also backup announcer for the backup announcer. In the event that two announcers need breaks at the same time or more than one announcer can't make it I'm on.

So get your name out to the people, and volunteer. It's so rewarding to know that you helped put on something incredible, and seeing all the teams faces when they rush the stands to get seats, there's nothing more rewarding.