Alumni Spotlight
Carey Shook

What team were you a member of?

Team 3229 Hawktimus Prime from Holly Springs, NC! I was the Media Captain, so I took all the pictures and produced any videos, was in charge of social media and the website, and helped with grant and award writing/interviewing. 

How many years were you on the team(s)?   3

Where do you currently work and what is your job description?

I am a copy editor at N2 Publishing in Wilmington, NC. I edit anywhere from 170-200 articles per day. They are talking about having me work with the web development team as well.

How long have you been working there?

Only one month—yay for first post-grad job! (I graduated from UNC Wilmington this past May.) 

What is one highlight from your time on the team?

I could say that the highlight was when we won the Judge's Award at the NC Regional in 2012, but I think the real highlight was my first season 2011 when we bagged our robot up and put it in the box. Since it was my first season, I wasn't sure of the hype/stress the night of. We stayed working on it until the last moment. I was taking last minute pictures when one of our presidents said it was time to bag up. Everyone went in a frenzy—not because we were out of time for any last minute add-ons or fixings, but because they wanted to hide something of our teacher/coaches in the box like they did the previous year. Mr. Simpson, the physics teacher, was oddly into stuffed squirrels and had a few around his classroom, our base camp. As the night progressed, Mr. Simpson was protecting the squirrels because he knew the team would try and get them. Mr. Simpson ended up leaving the room to check on the robot in the other room, leaving just me and another team member in his room where we were painting clothespins. Long story short, we ended up stealing both squirrels and got them in the box right before time. We laughed for so long after Mr. Simpson realized we'd gotten them. It made our team bond even more than we already had the entire season while building the robot. Seeing Mr. Simpson's face when we got to competition and he was able to hold them again was the funniest thing for us for some reason. 

What are the top three skills you learned from your FIRST experience that have made an impact on your current job?

Leadership, time management, and communication.

How has FIRST impacted your choices (school, career, etc…)?

FIRST made me the leader that I am. It taught me how to properly balance fun and seriousness in a leadership role. FIRST taught me how to slow down and properly make the right decisions, but also how to make them under pressure as well. FIRST also taught me that it's possible to learn new things and have fun doing it.

What words of wisdom do you have for current FIRSTers?

You don't have to be directly involved in the coding or building of the robot to be a part of FIRST. As the Media Captain, it took me a long time to realize that. I was always fascinated by coding and engineering, but it never clicked for me in the way I wanted it to. But I loved FRC 3229 and our team, so I knew I wanted to stay. Capturing every moment—both on camera and in words—is important for FIRST. While I sharpened my media manager skills, I also grew as a young leader and as a person. I made some of the best friends—the only people I still talk to from high school are from robotics. FIRST welcomes everyone and will find a place for you no matter your skills. FIRST will help you succeed in your way, and you might even learn a few other things along the way (like how I did pick up some coding skills!). All you need to do is enjoy your time how you know best, and FIRST will take care of you.