[Mr MOE]

Thanks for the shout out of congratulations to MOE, Occams Engineers, and Access 9 in response to our FIRST-sponsored trip to the White House.

I must add that, we are representing the thousands of FIRST teams out there, who worked as hard as we did during the build season and throughout the year. To every student who had to miss even more sleep to study for an exam at 2am, to every mentor who missed that dinner with the family, to every teacher who felt the guilt of leaving his/her class in the hands of a substitute while you travelled to an out-of-town regional, we are representing all of you.

It's a shame that you could not be there with us in person. Every dedicated FIRST team member deserves the experience that our teams had. With any luck (and lots of hard work), FIRST will make this White House recognition an annual one. I hope that teams, currently working so hard getting the word out to their communities, inspiring young children, mentoring other FRC and FVC, FLL, and JFLL teams, interacting with their government officials, and awakening whole new areas around the world to FIRST, will have their day in the sun and be recognized, too.

But, if for some reason that doesn't happen, the beauty of it all is that it is still worth it. To have a senior graduate, who has assembled a drive train when she hardly knew what a gear was as a freshman, who has gone from hardly talking to anyone to being your team's Chairman's Award presenter, or who has learned 3D Studio Max on his own and is now rendering with the best of them, is the best recognition your team and program can have. These individual accomplishments are what will change our culture.

Thank you teams for all your efforts this past season and previous years. Many of us truly love and treaure this part of our lives. Find ways to celebrate in your corner of the globe. Recognize people who made a difference. Make memories. Have fun.

The FIRST White House celebration was a recognition for ALL FIRST teams and the significant change you have all brought about.

Bravo!