[jessjank.]

I remember as a Girl Scout in elementary school I went to a lock-in at the high school's gym, of which one half was devoted to Cybersonics' mock playing field and game equipment. I had always loved Lego's and mechanical things of sorts, so when I was told what all the equipment was for I was terribly interested and was very curious as to what it was all about. Unfortunately, I never heard anything else about the team for a few years after that.

In middle school, though, our technology teacher was the brother of 103's founder and adviser and always told amazing stories about the team, FIRST, and robotics in general. Having remembered seeing some of the things when I was younger and having cultivated further interest in the whole program, I was very excited when I was given the opportunity in eighth grade (2001 season) to visit the Philadelphia Alliance Regional. I never expected to be drawn in so quickly, but the energy, excitement, and enthusiasm at the event were just incredible and it truly seemed like something I wanted to become a part of.

When I entered 9th grade, I quickly grabbed a team application from the extracurricular fair the school had held that year. The strange thing was, though, that I almost ended up not joining because I had already gotten myself involved with a number of other activities by that time and when I had definitely decided to join I had missed the application deadline, but thankfully was still accepted. While I had originally intended to join the team's manufacturing department, I ended up finding my place in Communications/PR/Marketing. Needless to say, I am indescribably glad and grateful that Cybersonics and FIRST became part of my life.