FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

Saturday, August 27, 2022

Press Contact: Michael Thomas, Sponsorship Coordinator, [email protected] 

Orange County Robotics Alliance announces Gene Haas Foundation as Presenting Sponsor for Beach Blitz 2022, expands competition

MISSION VIEJO, CA — The Orange County Robotics Alliance (OCRA) today announced the Gene Haas Foundation as the presenting sponsor of Beach Blitz, an annual robotics competition for high school students in Orange County, California. The announcement comes on the heels of a generous $15,000 donation from the Gene Haas Foundation.

"The Gene Haas Foundation has been an incredible partner for Beach Blitz — and FIRST® teams — since the early years,” said Pauline Tasci, Event Director. “We are thrilled for their continued support and are excited for the improvements their generosity can make to the team experience.”

This new partnership allows for an expanded offseason FIRST® Robotics Competition (FRC) event, featuring 42 teams (up from 36) and a simultaneous FIRST® LEGO League event. The competition will feature the same gameplay, team experience, and production quality as an official event, allowing students to experience more play with their robots and learn and grow in the offseason.

The 2022 event takes place on November 4-6 at Capistrano Valley High School in Mission Viejo and is currently recruiting volunteers and sponsors. The event is free for spectators, open to the public, and fun for all ages. Learn more at beachblitz.ocra.io.

About the Orange County Robotics Alliance (OCRA)

The Orange County Robotics Alliance is a 501(c)(3) organization that aims to amplify the impact of FIRST Robotics in Orange County by facilitating coopertition between teams, interaction between students and mentors, and broad public awareness.  We’re a coalition of students, mentors, and alumni from FIRST Robotics teams who host events, workshops, and competitions.

About the Gene Haas Foundation

The Gene Haas Foundation was established in 1999, by Gene Haas, founder and owner of Haas Automation, Inc., to support the needs of the local community, through grants to such local charities as the Boys and Girls Clubs, Food Share, Rescue Mission, and others.

Seeing a growing need for skilled manufacturing employees industry wide, the Foundation expanded its mission to include support for manufacturing training programs throughout North America and beyond. By providing scholarship grants, sponsoring individual and team CNC competitions, and partnering with the very best CNC training programs in the world, the Foundation helps expand the availability of high-quality manufacturing technology training worldwide.

The Gene Haas Foundation donates millions of dollars every year to manufacturing education and the community. In 2020, the Gene Haas Foundation provided more than $20 million in grants, bringing the total since inception to more than to $120 million.

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