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If you don’t want to read this (you should in my opinion), please join my robotics team! Information linked here: www.sarahheinzhouse.org/robotics
Hi, my name is JD Engel. You might know me from my articles about Nintendo, video games, my more recent article about campaigning in video games, or my newest article about the Super Bowl. Or you just see me while walking to your classroom, seeing my awkward posture while wearing a shirt that looks like it came straight from Reddit. Maybe you’re friends with me (probably not), or maybe you hate my guts (probably) because of something I did. Either way, you’re probably happy to see me go.
As a final message to everyone here at Avonworth, I wanted to share my experience with a particular robotics group, and hopefully encourage this years’ freshman, sophomores, and juniors to join what I believe is a great club to be a part of.
Seniors of 2025, when you ask them about what they remember about me, will usually state one of two things: his head exploded in 4th grade, and that he loves Battlebots. Battlebots, a show that originally aired in 1999 on Comedy Central for some reason, then ABC in 2015, and then Discovery Channel in 2019, was a show I was obsessed with in 3rd to 6th grade. The dopamine that came from watching big metal things hitting other big metal things was something I hadn’t felt up to that point in my life. It really gave me an itch to do something like it, and as a result, I joined a robotics club based in Sarah Heinz House.
SHARP, or the Sarah Heinz Advanced Robotics Program, is my lifeblood. All the different things I did were so much fun, from VEX IQ when I was just 9 years old to now, with VEX and FRC seasons that felt so fulfilling, even if we didn’t “win” anything. You can learn more about the VEX Robotics Competition here: https://www.vexrobotics.com/v5/competition/vrc-current-game and FIRST Robotics here: https://www.firstinspires.org/.
This program is so amazing, and it does so much for you that you would never even think it could do. It is more than just a place to compete, it is a family. You will have more fun and learn more from a single robotics season than you could ever in school. This is nothing like the robotics we have here; this is more hands-on and more advanced than anything we might have here.
If you want to learn more about SHARP and our programs, go to this link: https://www.sarahheinzhouse.org/robotics. Even if you don’t think you would be interested in robotics, I still highly recommend it, since a good portion of the season isn’t even about building; programming, art, social skills, and planning is a big part of the season, and you will find something to do here; I promise you. If you have any questions, email Nguyen@sarahheinzhouse.com.
Now that senior year is coming to an end, I should be saying how much I love the school and how I will miss it, but I can’t. This place, the construction, and ESPECIALLY the student body in my grade have really soured my high school experience, but I don’t wanna get into that. What I do want to do is share this club that has given me so much, and give people who are looking for opportunities a chance to experience the best thing that I had.
Thank you very much for reading this, join the team, and good luck with the rest of high school!
