UFH: Wayne Cokeley

[Kyle Love]

Congrats Mr. Cokeley! Great guys like you and all the other Unsung heros keep FIRST going!

[Dorienne]

Biggest congratulations to you, Mr. Cokeley! I've only met you briefly, but your team speaks so highly and so much of you that I feel as if I've known you for years! You truly deserve this honor, and I'm so glad you have finally received it. =) My most utter congratulations from the bottom of my heart to you.

[Corey Balint]

Honestly, i dont know what to say about Cokeley. Theres wayy too much to even try to think of at once. Bharat and the Mikes really said what i would say. Theres soo much to say we cant say anything and that Cokeley really is a good friend.

The best way i can describe it, i just got back from a meeting that started at 230 went til 5 and then we went out to Fuddruckers(Cokeley, another mentor, and a few teammates) and talked about the team and all our normal random things for another 2 hours.

Congratulations on a long overdue awards Cokeley.

-CB

[JudyVandy]

Congrads on the well deserved recognition. Your spirit and dedication are outstanding! Keep up the great work, not only with your team, but with the entire FIRST community.

[Andy Brockway]

Congratulations Wayne! I was honored to finally meet you at this year's NJ Regional. Your support of all in the FIRST family is fantastic!

[Elgin Clock]

Happy Birthday Wayne.. Oh.. DOH!! Wrong thread.

Umm.. Congratulations on your UFH nomination Wayne.
There we go, that's the right topic.

All kidding aside, I was so glad to see that you were able to make it to the New Jersey Regional this year, and I would like to wish you and your teams continued success in the years to come.

Maybe I'll see you at the NJ Regional in 2005?

[Rich Wong]

Congratulations Wayne!
I had the pleasure of meeting you and your team during the 2003 NJ Regional at Rutgers University. You probably don’t remember me, I was kind of in the way when you guys were busy fixing something… I think it was another team’s bot! I actually visited your pit several time to admire both the pit and your robot. I took many pictures to show NYC teams what an awesome FIRST team looks like.

Before then, I heard many stories about the legend of Wayne on Team# 25 from Randy (Director of NJ Regional). And that year was my pleasure of seeing you win the FIRST Regional Volunteer Award.

All I can said is….. “I’M NOT WORTHY…..”


Again Congrats…. and HAPPY BIRTHDAY!

[Raul]

Congratulations Wayne,

Your leadership on team 25 and on the CD forums is evident. I greatly respect what your team has accomplished under yours and the other mentor's guidance.

I am glad that you got your "shot" at us and made good on the opportunity. No excuses, you beat us fairly in that rematch - I do not mind losing to a great team who truly earned the win.

I look forward to seeing what your team cooks up this year.

Raul

[Matrix3000k]

Mr. C whats up man. i was just sitting here in cali and thought i would check out whats going on in with first and came along the article of the UFH and i want to extend my deepest congrats to you. i have known Mr. C for 9 years. he was my science teacher when i was a freshman in high school and hes the one that got me interested in the FIRST program when it started. I'm really glad that he did introduce me to FIRST. not only did i meet lots of people and made friends with many guys, girls, mentors, engineers and parents but he gave me a gift that most sports teams would have never given me. i mean we all have played on sports teams before and we all know that we get yelled at for the most little mistake that we do out on the field. but not in first if you make a mistake at anything you would not get yelled at but you would be educated on how not to make that mistake again. that is what Mr cokeley always believed in. our team/club never turned away any student and still will not turn anyone away. from being a student to a team mentor i have spent many interesting years with Mr cokeley. he is a very kind man loving, cares about everyone, and he is sooooooo spirited about first. i wanna thank Mr cokeley for who i am today. being involved with raider robotix and first have made a deep impact on my life and the way to do things now. i have never seen a man that would take the time away from his family time to help out a bunch of adolescents in an after school program. he totally deserve this award cokeley and i miss you and the team very very much. not only have you made a huge impact on my life but the other lives of the students that have graduated from NBTHS. hopefully i will be able to see you and team at nationals this year. but if i can't i will be wearing my Hawaiian shirt and cheering for raider robotix. Congrats again to a teacher, mentor, friend and deffently a hero!!!!!

Mario Azar
Raider Robotix Senior Mentor
Quote: Nothing is beyond anyones reach!!!!!!

[tjrage_25]

Hey Mr. Cokeley!!!

I just randomly stopped by to see what was up in FIRST and I saw this. Congratulations!

You and the team have had an indescribable impact on my life. This team was my pride and my life for the four years that I was on it. I would like to thank you and the team in general for making that possible. The friends made on that team and your guidance and inspiration made those four years the best years of my life.

Once again, congratulations, this has been a long time coming and it is most definitly well deserved.

-Tom McLean

PS: The website that I developed for the team during those years helped me land a job interview with Drexel's web development department. I figured I should post the link, so here it is www.pages.drexel.edu/~tjm44/robotics

[Adel Hodiwala]

words can not describe the impact that this man has had on so many students lives, whether he knows it or not

i know that as i attempt to write this i will not truley be able to express in words the impact that Mr. C has had on me and it is probably better that way because he is an individual that you really need to know to realize what a diverse and unique person he is.
His patience for the program and his students is tremendous. i believe that this is what has allowed team 25 to prosper for so long, and is what keeps the students coming back, whether it be active High schoolers, or alumni (ask big mike)

The team in general like many first teams, (esp. in the early years) went through a lot of hardships which would drive any sane person away from the project. But it truley takes a certain type of person to be a FIRST coach, Mr. C is without a doubt one of these gifted individuals.

His drive to the team and students who look up to him is incredible, it truely bares witness to the legacy that i feel he has created for himself.
He is an genuinly amazing and caring teacher, no in fact he is the definition of what a genuine teacher should be.

He spent the majority of his time trying to better our team, i honestly think that we and FIRST became a part of his family

By just observing over the years that i was in FIRST the way he carried himself and dealt with each obstacle that came in our way really left an impact on me. I learned about how FIRST really is about so much more than a robot competition, it is about team building and the individual. Mr. C knew this better than anyone i met throughout my whole FIRST experience. Truly one of the few teachers in my HS years that gave me actual guidance on where i wanted to direct my future.

Bringing the program into our school and sticking with it is something that i will always be so eternally greatful for, it was easily the best thing that i could have had in my life at the time

I realize more and more as i get older about how much of a positive impact he and his work ethic have had in my life. Im really glad youve gotten the recognition that you have becuase it is quite overdue

So MR. C thank you so much for your hard work and patience it is truly something that i will always be greatful to you for. Whether you realize it or not you have instilled in me morals that i will carry with me for the rest of my life.

Thank you





hes a really funny guy too, you should hear him rap sometime

[BandChick]

Like everyone else above me, congratulations, you really deserved this!

Cokeley to me was more than just a mentor or a teacher or an advisor. The more time I spent around him and around both 1089 and 25 the more I realized that he is like another father to me. He guides and teaches and inspires kids to strive for things that before don't even seem obtainable. I've watched him do amazing things with the kids on 25 and it makes me want to keep coming back and find some way to help as much as he has. In fact, I've watched the hours that he puts in with 1089, a team that he puts in extra time to help mentor and it fills me with pride. His kids are even interested in it, and they, I'm sure take their ques from him.

Cokeley is one of the most inspirational people I know, and I'm really happy that he finally got his just desserts. Congratulations again!