The Programming Team
[ Sallie Walecka ] [ Divya Bhat] [ Caroline Abbott ]
[ Sherri Billimoria ] [ Tobi Amos ]
Sallie Walecka
Programming Co-Lead
Years on Team: 3
Grade 11
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I actually don't remember, but I think I heard an anouncement in physics and then I learned people I already knew were on the robotics team. At first I
thought I would only be able to come once a week, but then I
ended up practically living at school with robotics. I've learned programming and
how to work on a problem a long amount of time. I've learned
that I am good at keeping myself busy, and that I like learning
weird skills. It showed me what types of jobs I could be in the future. I like meeting all our mentors
from various places and learning what they do. Now I have
some idea of what I want to do. This isn't really a story, but dinnertime at Robotics is always fun. All the interesting food the parents bring is so cool. It is
fun to take a break, have some entertainment (jokes from shifra) and
regroup to talk about the robot. My favorite thing about
robotics are the mentors. They are really cool people and... well
they are just awesome. They teach us so much and are fun. I don't
really know how to describe how super they are.
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Divya Bhat
Programming Co-Lead
Years on Team: 3
Grade 11
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Freshman year, the clubs fair offered a plethora of club options. Of all of them,
robotics was the most interesting. Through all of middle school, programming had been
one of my favorite classes, and the robotics team would allow me to learn even more (of a
useful language, as opposed to Pascal). Being on a robotics team has taught me not only how
to use chainsaws and drills (instruments that I had never touched prior to high school), but also C,
Java, and Labview. FIRST has definitely made me think of engineering as a possible career! I've
realized I do love programming, and just maybe minor in Computer Science someday. But more than
giving me insight into possible future careers, robotics, through team dinners and mutual love for
wire strippers and soldering irons, has given me a second family and knowledge of teamwork!
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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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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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Tobi Amos
Programmer/Prototyper
Years on Team: 3
Grade 11
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I joined robotics because it's awesome! It's really fun to think of cool ideas for a robot. I like how
some of the challenges focus on human deployment in addition to the robot, so that a) more people can participate, and b) it's more than just cool programming,
it takes good aim, too.
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