The Leads
[ Sherri Billimoria ] [
Ida Hempel ] [ Caroline Abbott ]
Sherri Billimoria
Team Captain
Years on Team: 4
Grade 12
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I joined robotics somewhat on a whim -- I had done FLL in middle school and enjoyed it, but wasn't sure whether I wanted the intensity of FRC. The energy and enthusiasm of Team 1700 soon changed my mind. I've learned so much from my experience with robotics, both the technicalities of how to set a motor output to a specific PWM as well as many "fuzzier" but equally important topics. I clearly remember the first time I understood how to code in C. After weeks pouring over "C for Dummies", mentors finally sat us down to explain the basics and suddenly it all became clear. Those "aha!" moments are my favorite part of robotics. I also love the small family-feel of our team - when you're spending five hours every day together, you really do become a family!
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Ida Hempel
Operations Lead
Years on Team: 4
Grade 12
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As a freshman, I joined robotics out of curiosity - never before had I handled so much as a
screwdriver. After a year, I decided to explore the website and fundraising subteams.
To my surprise, FRC teams are essentially small businesses in their complexity and structure.
By being a part of the operations teams, I've been able to see how the entire process works,
from the fundraising at the beginning of the year to the build season to the final competitions.
I have learned a tremendous amount about communications, interacting with sponsors, and wrangling
with source code. I've enjoyed being able to have both a "people" focus and a "technology" focus and
I love being a part of the tight knit community that's grown up around our robotics team for the
past four years.
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Caroline Abbott
Technical Lead
Years on Team: 4
Grade 12
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During Freshman year, I joined robotics because of my interest in solving problems,
effective recruitment by a friend who was a senior on the team, and a really fun workshop where
we made blinky bugs, little bugs with LED light eyes. From three years with the team, I have learned
how to write code, design robots, and more importantly how to work together, have a good time,
and take pride in our work. Once, we were at a competition, and a mentor from another team tried
to fix our robot without our consent, because he thought we girls couldn't do it. A little fire
flared up in all of us, since we knew we understood our robot and how to fix it, and of course we
knew being girls did not effect our abilities, unless for the better. That day only reinforced our
desire to create robots that were our own, and made us more proud of our work. From robotics, I have
learned that I love to solve problems, and work through things step by step. FIRST had definitely
inspired me to pursue engineering in college; I love the collaborative atmosphere and intriguing
nature of the work. My favorite thing about robotics is definitely our team, we have an excellent
time together, do fairly well, and are confident in our abilities and understand our entire robot system.
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