Volume 2020 -02| February 2020
Rocky Mountain BEST Volunteer Newsletter
How to help make a difference
in the lives of Colorado students in 2020!
Boosting BEST Fundraiser
Signup is NOW Open
Sunday 5 April
5 PM - 8:30 PM
You are invited to share with us the passion of introducing students to pursuits related to Science, Technology, Engineering and Math. Your participation helps us bring our yearly robotics competition to over 600 middle and high school students - at no cost to schools.    

Boosting BEST will be another fun fundraising evening with the following planned activities:
  • 5:00 - 6:30 PM SILENT AUCTION
  • 5:00 - 6:00 PM DSST: Byers Team: 2019 BEST Award Exhibit and Robot
  • 5:00 - 6:00 PM Dinner, 6:00 - 6:30 PM Dessert
  • 6:00 - 6:30 PM Music by The Gary DeFrange Combo
  • 6:30 - 7:30 PM Program with Jared Hodison Guest Speaker Lincoln HS RM BEST Team Leader / December CBS4 Future Leaders Winner PLUS Ralston Valley High School Team Marketing Presentation
  • 7:30 - 8:30 PM Evening end with Silent Auction Checkout

BAC Appliance Center has again generously offered their beautiful facility for the fundraiser.

We will be emailing a Boosting BEST invitation in the next week which you may forward to family and friends..
BAC Logo
2020 Event Schedule - PLEASE SAVE THE DATES
  • Teacher / Mentor Institute - 14-16 July @ MSU Denver

  • Kickoff - 12 September @ TBD venue
  • Practice Day - 17 October @ TBD venue
  • Game Day - 24 October @ Auraria Event Center

  • Denver BEST Regional Championship - 12-13 December @ Arapahoe County Fairgrounds Aurora
2020 Game Announced - Incision Decision
Incision Decision Game Teaser
BEST Robotics Inc. announced the 2020 Game - Incision Decision and released the 1 minute game teaser video at the link to the left.

Hub leadership will be watching a 6 March live streaming of the game Prototype Kickoff and then attending the April Prototype Game Weekend Event in Dallas to learn more about this year's game. Game details will be released to teams at our September Kickoff Event.
2020 Outreach Activity
What does the future hold for 8 th Graders in Aurora Public Schools? 
Rocky Mountain BEST tried to help answer that question on 11 February by staffing an exhibit at the Aurora Public Schools Career Trek for 8 th graders.
Rocky Mountain BEST was center stage with plenty of room for the students to drive the Outreach Robot and to ask questions about participating in our events—either with a school team or as a volunteer. It was great to speak with students already familiar with BEST and to introduce BEST to students who may participate in the future. The positive attitudes of students and their serious inquiries were important reasons for BEST to promote our workplace and STEM skills at the event. We were also able to speak with teachers and parents about STEM possibilities through Rocky Mountain BEST.
Volunteers supporting this event for the day were Ben and Kayla Straub, Lois Walton, and Lori Lazuk. Our thanks for their efforts on a cold and snowy day!
Additional Ways to Contribute
Colorado State Tax ReFUND Donation Option
If you get a Colorado state income tax refund in 2020, you will have a new opportunity to donate some or all of it to support our ongoing work with Colorado schools.
The new program described by the ReFUND CO initiative puts you in charge of where your donation goes. It’s as simple as 1,2,3:
  1. Decide how much of your refund to donate.
  2. Enter Rocky Mountain BEST and our registration number 20123026982 in the Donate to a Colorado Nonprofit Fund line on your state income tax return or tax software – or just give this info to your tax preparer when you share your tax documents.
  3. Smile knowing you’ve helped a cause that matters to you!
You can learn more program details at this program FAQ link.
Boost
CBS4 STEM Future Leaders Award Opportunity

Know a high school student thriving in STEM? Nominate them for Future Leaders and a chance to receive a $1,000 award!
CBS4 is again awarding  FUTURE LEADERS  presented by Colorado School of Mines and PDC Energy. It is an initiative to recognize Colorado high school students who are excelling in STEM (science, technology, engineering, mathematics).
CBS4 invites teachers, parents, mentors, and others to nominate students who they believe will be our future STEM leaders. Nomination period ends 17 April 2020. One student is selected each month to receive this special recognition award that will include a $1,000 award along with a student profile on CBS4.

Energy Day - Save the Date 26 September 2020
Other Ways to Participate by Donating
Donations 
You can donate ANYTIME at  Rocky Mountain BEST at ColoradoGives.org. 
Benevity
If  your company has gift matching through Benevity, Rocky Mountain BEST is one of the eligible non-profit organizations. Please check with your company about gift matching!
King Soopers/City Market
Thanks to the 15 households who are using their King Soopers / City Market savings cards to donate to Rocky Mountain BEST.
If you used to refill a King Soopers gift cards for us and now need help setting up your savings card, please email  lois.walton@bestinc.org. Lois would be glad to talk you through the quick process!
Amazon Smile
Amazon donates 0.5% of the price of your eligible AmazonSmile purchases to Rocky Mountain BEST whenever you shop on AmazonSmile.
Amazon Smile is the same Amazon you know. Same products, same prices, same service.
Wondering what to do with your used car or truck? 
Donating your old vehicle to ROCKY MOUNTAIN BEST is convenient, easy, and may qualify you for a tax deduction. And best of all, your donation of a used car or truck will make a big difference in supporting ROCKY MOUNTAIN BEST.
Why not donate your vehicle today? All you need to do is to complete our SIMPLE ONLINE FORM or call 1-866-628-2277 and we'll take care of the rest. We will pick up your vehicle, arrange to have your donation towed, and provide you with a tax-deductible receipt, all at no charge to you. 
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Build a robot in six weeks;
inspire a youth for a lifetime
Don't miss out making it possible!