How has the recession affected your team?

Originally Posted by Transformix Eng

It's tough going!
We are a rookie team from Kingston ON Canada, the nearest FRC team is 2 hours away. Very few people/ corporations in our community have ever hear of FIRST Robotics. With the "good will" money drying up fast, we are finding it hard to get potential local major-sponsors to commit to any sort of support. We are now changing tactics and focusing on finding a lot of smaller sponsors instead of a few major corporate ones.
Wish us luck and hopefully we'll see you in Atlanta.

Jeff

Don't forget you're local media, I know with the recession there are less and less if us media around but there still are some, you're local community papers, radio stations, TV station if you have one, make a presentation and visuals and hammer away at the media to do a story on you're team, if they bite it's a great way to get the word out that you exist and what you do.

It's hard in the Toronto market to do that because if "agenda stories" but in the smaller markets I think you will have good success. Any business and local trade magazines and papers as well that serve industry in you're area.

Then at least businesses will know what FIRST is and you're team as well.

m

[E.L.I.T.E. 48]

Team 48 has been extremely fortunate this year due to our main sponsor (Delphi) continuing to support us. We have had a few parents laid off; however, some of them have used this as an opportunity to give more of their time to the team.
Also, trough the combined efforts of NEOFRA ( Northeast Ohio FIRST Robotics Alliance), and the continued support of US Congressman Tim Ryan we have been able to start four new FLL teams, two new FRC teams, and one FTC team. I am being optimistic about the upcoming season, and I hope that things get better for those teams who are struggling.

[Travis Hoffman]

Originally Posted by E.L.I.T.E. 48

I am being optimistic about the upcoming season, and I hope that things get better for those teams who are struggling.

http://tribtoday.com/page/content.de....html?nav=5021

20%+ cuts across the area, but naturally, over 50% of local robotics mentors were affected. They would like to remain local, but viable engineering jobs in this economic wasteland are very hard to come by.

Anyone want to start a job networking service on CD for recession refugees? Mentors displaced in such situations (not just here in Warren) deserve better. Is there anything the engineering mentor community can do to help such individuals out?