While in elementary school, sophomore Laurel Enos had her first experience with the nonprofit organization ReCreate on a girl scout trip. Unbeknownst to her, she would return on multiple occasions and spend hours working under the company.

ReCreate, a company devoted to reimagining ways to use recycled material, launched their newest summer program, Maker Ambassadors, this year. Enos participated in the volunteer makerspace technologies training program along with 15 other high school students.

While ReCreate spreads the message of reducing waste in the community and empowering youth through S.T.E.A.M. (science, technology, engineering, art and math), the purpose of Maker Ambassadors is more specific.

“Our goal is to promote maker education, which is very hands on,” Americorps VISTA member and ReCreate employee Shubha Arehalli said. “You’re applying things you learned in the classroom, and also learning from peers or members of the community.”

This year Arehalli facilitated training, which allowed Laurel and other participants to lead the project and incorporate their own original ideas.

“A lot of what the program turned out to be was shaped by the ambassadors – they took an active role in teaching lessons,” Arehalli said. “Laurel took a lot of initiative.”

According to Enos, she learned prerequisite skills through a series of two-hour workshop classes over the course of a week, which provided training in specialized skills, such as 3D printer usage, programming, LittleBits, conductive sewing and more.

Enos took part in two five-day kids’ camps from 8:00 a.m. to 2:00 p.m. One was a Spy Camp where gadgets were built out of an assortment of materials and the other a Cardboard Makers Camp.

Enos believes the experience will benefit her in the future.

“The attitude was positive, which led to me having an excellent experience with the kids and the other workers,” Eno said. “I plan on possibly becoming a history teacher when I’m older, so some good skills I learned from this program were how to deal with younger kids and being in that position of authority to teach them.”

Rachael Enos, Laurel’s mother, believes the experience positively benefited Laurel.

“It was the perfect opportunity for Laurel to learn new skills and get out of the house to meet new people,” Mrs. Enos said. “Laurel gained a lot of confidence by participating in this program.”

Over the winter, ReCreate hopes to recruit more participants. Depending on her schedule, Enos plans to reconnect with them in the foreseeable future.

“I really enjoyed it,” Enos said. “It gave a fun aspect to my summer. In the future I look forward to just doing it again and getting more experience with the kids.”