Volunteering with FIRST: A Family Affair

FIRST is an organization whose mission is to show students of every age that science, technology, and problem-solving are not only fun and rewarding, but are proven paths to successful careers and a bright future for us all.  Yet, for so many of us, FIRSTtouches so much more of our lives than just introducing us to a world of science and innovation. For George Marchant, FIRST has been a part of his life for fifteen years, ten of which was spent volunteering for FIRST Tech Challenge(FTC).

His initial introduction to FTC was at its very inception. “When I heard about the demo event that was scheduled for the 2005 World Championship. FTC was always attractive to me as I see the entry cost of the FIRST Robotics Competition as a barrier to many school districts in lower income communities, or areas without major engineering sponsors.  I also think that FTC allows teams to be formed from groups outside the school system such as Girl Scouts, 4-H, or Home school organizations.”

Volunteering with FIRSTwas initially overwhelming, George says, with thoughts of, “Oh my god, what have I gotten myself into.” running through his brain. But it wasn’t long before he “found that [he] really enjoyed working with the students…[he] felt that FIRST was the type of thing that was missing when [he] was in High School.” What he didn’t know, was how the decision to volunteer “would lead to hundreds and hundreds of hours of volunteering.  Not one hour of which do I regret.”

However, even more than just giving back to FIRST, George believes that “FIRST can be life changing. Literally.  I have a group of friends through FIRST that have become like my family.  I had the teacher who leads my old FRC team and a former team alumnus who is now a close friend as groomsmen at my wedding.  A wedding that never would have happened if I had not worked as the FTC Program Director, since I met my wife while I was in New Hampshire.”

FIRST does not stop when the event is over, the season completed, or the students graduate from their program. It continues on for as long as you want. George states “that it becomes a family affair.  My wife knew what she was getting into when she married me, but I'm not sure she realized that I'd be convincing her to volunteer in a large number of qualifiers, state championships, super-regionals, and the World Championship.  And our new son will be with us as soon as he is old enough to help.”