Community Initiatives

After our first year in 2005, the team learned that continued community assistance is a key part to the FIRST tradition.  FIRST thrives off community involvement, and with this in mind, we have planned community events into each subsequent season.  Our overall goal is to raise  awareness and interest about FIRST and to  start a second FRC team in the region.

Some of these events include:

  • A day at the park in both Montvale, New Jersey and Hillsdale, New Jersey
  • Robot demonstrations at local middle schools
  • Starting four FIRST Lego League (FLL) teams at the River Vale Middle School; “Holdrum Hawks,” at the Hillsdale Middle School, “George White Middle School,”  at the Fieldstone Middle School in Montvale,  “Fieldstone Falcons”, and at the Woodcliff Lake Middle School in Woodcliff Lake, “The Lego Techs.”
  • A presentation to the Chamber of Commerce
  • Mentoring and Mechanical assistance to Newark, NJ teams
  • Mentoring and Mechanical assistance to Rookie team 2596, Ferris High School, in Jersey City
  • Girl Scout Council of Bergen County – assisting to start a 20 hour “Intro to Robotics” program in the summer of 2006, to teach female team members to participate, thus spreading FIRST.
  • River Vale, NJ clean-up after severe flooding after Hurricane immediately following the 2007 FIRST Championship
  • Storm Drain Managment Program in Montvale, NJ during which Pi-oneers labeled storm drains with environmental markers in order to let the community know that storm drains are not for trash or pollution because they drain directly to our local watershed.
  • Memorial Day Parade in both Hillsdale and River Vale, NJ – Team members and robot participated in the parades.
  • Winter Wonderland – a holiday party for underprivileged children
  • Donated and organized food for the Helping Hands Food Pantry in Hillsdale, NJ.
  • Sponsored and ran an official FLL Tournament at the Cavellini School in Upper Saddle River, NJ.
  • Participation in a non-profit organization, Computer Outreach. This organization receives donated computers which their volunteers refurbish to donate to underprivileged children.