…regardless of circumstances known or unknown, I wanted to be sure to offer a much deserved public thank you to both Dave Lavery and Dr. Woodie Flowers for their tireless volunteer work as members of the FRC game design committee. Dave served on the committee for a decade and Dr. Flowers for all 20 FRC seasons (I believe) to date. The vision, passion, and dedication to the ethos of the program you both have brought to the work of the GDC will surely be missed.
Thank you Dave and Woodie for all the work you have put in designing all the interesting, challenging games over the years. Hopefully FIRST will make an effort to allow the whole FRC community and not just those of us here on ChiefDelphi to recognize and applaud these two fantastic individuals for their many years of service.
I will admit I am saddened and a bit worried about future FRC games with the simultaneous loss of both of these longtime GDC members. Having said that, I know both certainly must have had their reasons for leaving and I respect their decision.
The title of the thread can’t be overstated in my opinion. Game design is HARD work - with the pressure of thousands of teams with tens of thousands of students analyzing your every move, being able to make great games year after year is no easy task.
If it weren’t for the great games of the past - how many of you would have been inspired? I know that the deep strategic elements of FRC games were directly responsible for my inspiration by this program. Thanks for everything.
Thank you so much for your extended service to FIRST through the GDC and your incredible integrity we are sorry to see you leave. FIRST will not be the same. You have both been role models that any student could be proud to look up to.
Dave and Woodie,
I am both shocked and saddened at the loss of both of you. One of the stabilizing factors in First has been your dedication and creativity on game design and competition ideals. Few know of the great sacrifice you both have given over the past years in this tireless task.
Al
I, too, want to echo my sincere thanks for your years (actually, decades) of hard work and leadership. FIRST is the way it is because of your efforts and inspiration. Thank you, thank you, thank you.
To say FIRST will not be the same would be an understatement. The entire FIRST community is grateful for your years of dedicated service. I wish you both the best of luck in your future endeavors.
I hope you recognize the impact you both have had on the lives of thousands of students and mentors alike.
Thank you both for your many years of mentorship to all of us, adults and students alike. You have inspired so many of us to get involved in helping to make our individual and collective futures brighter and I appreciate your hard work and devotion to FIRST and young people everywhere.
I am fairly new to FIRST but I recognize the importance of the time and dedication Woodie and Dave gave.
They both took on difficult jobs that some of us would back down from. It is impossible to ignore that there was criticism for their decisions, but nothing is ideal and we all know how thankful we are for these two individuals for bearing with the task and providing the challenges that helped in the inspiration and recognization by kids for science and technology.
The GDC will never be the same with out these two incredible human beings. They were the driving force behind the inspiration of so many students and adults in FIRST.
Thank you a thousand times over for your service to our young people.
I have to say this is the saddest day that I have had in FIRST. To lose both of these fine gentlemen from the GDC will be hard. It will be hard next year to imagine not hearing from Dave regarding the crazy clues we get every year. Words aren’t enough to say how thankful the G.R.A.Y.T. Leviathons are to these fine scholars. The kids and mentors look up to both of you as the true definition of Gracious Professionalism. I thank you for everything.
Thanks for all the work you’ve done. I certainly hope that the people that replace you are half the men you are. I hope you enjoy some of the newfound downtime that you truly deserve.
I am shocked and saddened at this news as well. I appreciate all the hard work these two dedicated people have given over the years. It can’t be easy for them either.
I know I’ve been a critic of some things from time to time, but I hope that I have always been supportive of the GDC, just not the decision.
Thank you Dave and Woodie for the years of design you have added to each year’s game. I have hope that you will continue to be a force in FIRST programs and inspiration to all. Woodie is my hero and whenever Dave speaks I have my face to my computer screen eager to learn.
FIRST has been going though many changes since I started, and changes like these are really scary, but I can’t wait for what the future holds for the new GDC and for the roles that Woodie and Dave will still hold in the FIRST community.
The question for me is, can I still pander to Dave for a spot in the GDC?
