Hello everyone,

The Wayne County Mini Maker Faire is a family-friendly showcase of invention, creativity and resourcefulness and a celebration of the Maker Movement.  It’s a place where people show what they are making, and share what they are learning.  Makers range from tech enthusiasts to crafters to homesteaders to scientists to garage tinkerers. They are of all ages and backgrounds. The aim of Maker Faire is to entertain, inform, connect and grow this community.

The Daily Record said it best: “Dubbed the ‘Greatest Show and Tell on Earth’; over 1,300 people flocked to the second annual faire at the University of Akron Wayne College last May.  It was a fresh experience with favorite makers from last year coming back along with new makers and new things to see and do.

Since 2013 or so, the Midwest RepRap Festival, or MRRF, has been a quickly growing gathering of 3D printing enthusiasts from all over the world.  This year, it has grown to encompass three large buildings in Goshen, Indiana and housed an incredible 3D printers, both new and old.

This event offers not only a chance to see printers in action, but also to experience new experiments, cool custom projects, get your printer repaired, and best of all you can meet people.

Joel from 3D Printing Nerd put out a pretty good summary of some of the projects you might see at the event.

This tour from Thomas Sanlanderer shows off just how huge and chaotic the event has become, and he’s filming during a slow period!

We are proud to showcase Ohio makers participating in the Wayne County Mini Maker Faire.  One of these people is Eliot Aretskin-Hariton.  He invented Obelisk, a cooperative board game that was originally prototyped using free-to-access laser cutter resources at the Cleveland Public Library.  At the faire this May, he will have on-display the process he traveled through over the last two years from initial inception through industrial scale production.  Come talk with Eliot and his group if you want to understand what it takes to make your own board game.

Don’t miss their crowd sale from April 12-19th!  The more people that purchase the game during the crowd sale, the less everyone pays for the game.  As a tiny board game company, they need your help getting the word out.  Our greatest advantage is their passionate supporters! 

Another group participating in the Wayne County Mini Maker Faire this year are the Pirates of the Rusty Cutlass.  They are pirate entertainers that educate people about nautical and pirate history.

Sailin’ aboard th’ Inferno, we be th’ Pirates o’ th’ Rusty Cutlass – th’ grandest crew o’ skallywags yew’ll eva cross paths wit’. Prop up yer peg, grab yerself some refreshyments, an’ join in on arr adventures!  Fer more information, http://apirateslifefor.us/hireus.php

Rounding out our participating makers is Gavin Maibach.  A number of students are makers and want to show some of their work.  One featured project was the construction of a popsicle stick house with time lapse video documentation.  The house was later enhanced with the addition of LED lights and a power door operator, requiring learning to solder.

Gavin is a seventh grade student.  He enjoys making things and also learning about science, technology, engineering, and math (STEM).  One thing he does to learn is to take things apart.  Gavin built a 3D printer at the Schantz Makerspace.  He operates a laser engraver at the Romich Foundation Makerspace, too.

If you would like to know more about Eliot’s Obelisk board game, the Pirates of the Rusty Cutlass, or Gavin’s popsicle stick house, please reply to this email.

Mark your calendar for May 18, 2019 for the Wayne County Mini Maker Faire!  It’s our third year and we have an exciting variety of makers.  It’s an indoor/outdoor event with a festival theme.  There is something for everyone!  Click here for a list of makers from past years and some coming to this year’s faire, too.  It’s a truly unforgettable experience.

Until next week,

Tom