On this, our 20th anniversary, I would like to thank all of you, on behalf of the IEEE Baltimore Section, for the great performance of the IEEE team in assuring that the students would have a memorable experience that would stay with them throughout their career. Whether they go on to become engineers or some other professional, this experience has provided them with Writing skills, Scheduling and Oral Presentation skills, and the confidence they can make mistakes yet complete a project, on time, and demonstrably to spec. It has allowed them to develop fine motor skills, learn to solder, and to have fun developing an artistic body, much as is needed for most engineering projects, and which often distinguishes those that achieve great demand and excitement, from those that just meet the technical requirements (think Apple).

Saturday was a fairly slow day, but it was very positive for the 6 teams that were there. Everyone's attitude was very positive, and one of the teams came in 2nd in the standings for Manually controlled 2-leg Robots.

On Sunday there were 31 teams, but we had twice as many judges, and teams were processed very smoothly, with few delays. I would like to recognize particularly Dave Boyd, chief judge for the Track events, and Brian Sequeira, chief judge for the Oral Presentations, who led the "ballet" of judges from one team to the next, and from the 9 Track tables to the 9 Oral Presentation areas.

Keeping track of what was going on were our Administrators, Jay Gamerman and John Dentler; feeding data to the computers was Scott Goedeke; and Rachel Jacobs was the announcer and teams coordinator. Without you nothing would have been possible!

On the technical scene, and the salvation for many a team, were the PIT specialists, ably led by Bill Semancik. We started this feature a number of years ago, and it has been a great way to assure that every team starts out with a robot that is mechanically functional before they get on the Track. I'm sure many a team has thanked you very profusely for your timely interventions.

There is a lot of background work that goes into the preparation for this event, not the least being the distribution of kits and keeping track of charges and expenses. Jay Gamerman has taken the lead in this effort, was the designer of the Automation option, and did the coordinating of schools and mentors, a vital aspect in helping the schools succeed and getting their teams to the Event. Also helping in this area was Jeff Friedhoffer, who handled Registration, our web-site, was a mentor, and is our official photographer and curator. We'd like to thank the other mentors as well - they did a fabulous job keeping the students engaged before the Event.

You can see that this really is a team event. To all you judges, give yourselves a real pat on the back - you are the ones these students meet face-to face, and you will have made all the difference in making this a memorable experience for them.

As for me, my involvement was with the preparation for the event and the Written Reports, I worked with Melinda Cane at the Museum, and with Tim Neary, who handled the food and prepared that great reception we had before the Awards ceremony - wasn't that terrific for the kids, parents and everyone?Once the event started, it was you who did the work and made it look polished, and my very special thanks to every one of you.

Last but not least, I would like to thank the Officers and Board members of the Baltimore Section of IEEE. They're the ones who provided the support and a good part of the funding for this activity. It really was a Team effort!

Hope you enjoyed the experience, and thank you again for making it happen!

Neville Jacobs