The world of high school robotics is changing the lives for so many young people.

Duluth Denfeld’s robotics team took 2nd place out of 51 teams at the regionals this year. On Friday night there was a chance for the community to show their support. Denfeld robotics held a fun night of demonstrations and a silent auction to raise money for their program.

It takes money to keep a robotics team going. Money for materials, for travel, lodging, food and more. And judging from Friday night’s turnout, the Denfeld community is behind their team.

Piper Hamilton is a 10th grader on the Denfeld robotics team. He told us the team was very proud of their second place finish at the La Crosse regionals. They captained the second-seeded alliance, made it to the finals, and won the Autonomous Award which celebrates the team that has demonstrated consistent, reliable, high-performance robot operation during autonomously managed actions. Evaluation is based on the robot’s ability to sense its surroundings, position itself or onboard mechanisms appropriately, and execute tasks.

He told us that Friday night’s gathering was special to all the team members. “My favorite part about tonight is seeing everyone getting really involved. Seeing just seeing how many people are here to support our team is really meaningful and it’s just really cool to see.”

Hamilton said fundraisers like this are a great way to give the community a chance to feel part of the team, even if not everyone can attend actual robotics competitions in person.