[Waynep]

Heidi, thanks for sharing the story. The first guy is Daniel Cherry; that was his first year with us and he was really shy to begin with. The interesting thing is that he definitely remembers that conversation with you. He told me that the first competition at VCU really changed him. His first conversation was with a girl from 116 who was really nice, he was really nervous at first but she was nice and really listened. Daniel gained a lot of confidence and I guess we have you to thank.

The second guy is Rueben Bridges. He was one of the original members of the team 7 years ago and has now become one of the mentors. The kids affectionally know him as old man or grandpa. He will pretty much help you with anything you ever ask him for and now kindly guides the way for our students.

Gene, as you know we are big fans of Metal in Motion. But I don't know if I ever told you more specifically why. You were one of the first mentors that approached my students and talked to them that year. Your students were gracious and inviting. So 343 definitely made us feel welcome at VCU. Our team has benefitted greatly from meeting you guys. Thank you again for your kind comments.

As Heidi and Gene has demonstrated, there are spectacular individuals in FIRST that are willing to share their story and learn something about you if you take the chance at approaching them. We help each other learn and grow through our interactions. To all the students that read this, I challenge you all to do what Heidi did and take the time to get to know at least one student or team better at the competition and share your FIRST experiences.

Please give my regards and best wishes to the rest of 116 and 343, and stop by to visit us at the Championship.

Best,
Wayne