Reboot Robotics Monthly Newsletter – July 2025 Edition
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A Message From the CEO
What a summer it’s been so far! We’re excited to share that Reboot Robotics is officially moved into our new building! After many long days and countless hours, our new space is nearly ready—just a few finishing touches left. It’s been so fun to see the space come together, and we can’t wait to welcome our teams and students into it soon!
Even during our summer break, we’ve kept the momentum going. We hosted our first Youth Robotics Class and took part in the Lucas Oil Speedway 50/50 Raffle—two amazing events that brought learning, outreach, and fun together.
The class gave young students a chance to experience robotics hands-on, building and modifying robots before testing them in a game-style challenge. Their creativity, teamwork, and gracious professionalism blew us away. It was a joy to witness and a reminder of why we do what we do.
Meanwhile, at Lucas Oil Speedway, we connected with the community and raised funds during Military & Veteran Appreciation Night. We sold $906 in raffle tickets—and we were especially happy to see a veteran win the prize!
As a reminder, we’re excited to be launching our new FLL team this upcoming season! If your student is interested in joining either the FLL or FTC team, please be sure to submit your application soon—the window to join is closing quickly.
Thank you for being a part of our mission. We’re building more than robots—we’re building confidence, skills, and a community of young innovators.
With gratitude,
Nicole Neeld
Founder & CEO, Reboot Robotics
Team Highlights
🟣 FIRST Tech Challenge (FTC) - Nuclear Space Potatoes
Even while on summer break, our team has stayed active! Three members helped mentor during our Youth Robotics Class—gaining valuable experience, adding to their team portfolio through outreach, and giving back to the next generation of builders.
Two of our families represented the team at the Lucas Oil Speedway 50/50 Raffle, helping raise funds and share about robotics with the community. One more family had planned to join us but had to miss due to illness—please join us in praying for health and recovery for our teammate and to keep his family healthy too.
🟢 FIRST LEGO League (FLL) - Space Taters
We’re looking forward to launching soon and can’t wait to get started! If you’re a homeschool student interested in joining, be sure to get your application in as soon as possible.
Upcoming Events
🎉 FTC at the Zenith Invitational
Date: Saturday, August 2
Time: 9 AM – 4 PM
Location: Rolla, MO
Details: Our FTC team, the Nuclear Space Potatoes, will be heading to the Zenith Invitational for a day of workshops, connection with other robotics teams, and watching friendly off-season competition. We’re excited to learn from others!
🤖 FLL Challenge Game Release
Date: Tuesday, August 5
Details: It’s almost here! The official 2025–2026 FIRST LEGO League Challenge game, UNEARTHED, will be released on August 5. Our brand-new FLL team is ready to jump into the season with curiosity, creativity, and teamwork!
⚙️ Team Meetings Resume
Date: Monday, August 11
Location: 2801 W Broadway Street, Bolivar, MO
Details: Our robotics season officially kicks off again on August 11! Both our FLL and FTC teams will be back in action, building, learning, and preparing for an exciting year ahead.
🧁 Bake Sale Fundraiser for Ozarks Food Harvest
Date: Monday, August 25
Time: 11 AM – 1:30 PM
Location: SBU Student Union Building, Bolivar, MO
Details: Come grab a sweet treat and support a great cause! Our FTC team will be hosting a bake sale to raise funds for the Ozark Food Harvest. Every baked good helps make a difference in our community and beyond.
Spotlight Series
Hello everyone, I’m Laura—2nd coach and proud mother of CEO/Lead Coach Nicole.
I thought this would be a good time to highlight what Nicole has accomplished in her first year starting Reboot Robotics. It all started because her boys wanted to do robotics again (they had moved several times before finally settling in Missouri). Nicole launched an FTC team and handled all the paperwork and filings to establish the nonprofit.
She’s had quite a challenging year—homeschooling, managing a homestead, and navigating a big family transition as her husband went back to active duty (for the 3rd time!) in the U.S. Army. On top of all that, she’s worked tirelessly, knocking on doors for donations, making countless phone calls, sending emails to secure mentors, creating handbooks, and—most recently—securing a dedicated building space for the teams.
She’s also launching outreach programs to give other children in the community a chance to learn about and experience robotics. This year, she’s adding a First LEGO League (FLL) team (and maybe more), attending a STEM conference (literally as I’m writing this), and planning even more community activities.
Nicole has poured in countless hours to make robotics 🤖 a fantastic experience for our team. Her brain is always in robotics mode—our family jokes that it’s “24/7 robotics!”
Nicole is everything you want in a leader: dedicated, determined, hard-working, passionate, and just a little crazy about robotics 😂. As her parent, I’m incredibly proud of her and amazed by everything she does and achieves.
We, as a team, are looking forward to another great season—and hopefully making her proud too. GREAT JOB, Nicole! We think you’re awesome—and we love you! ❤️
Thank You to Our Sponsors!
We’re incredibly thankful for Buzz’s Market, a Silver Level Sponsor. Their continued support helps us provide engaging STEM education to students in our community. We’re proud to have Buzz’s Market as part of the Reboot Robotics family!
Favorite Moments This Month
July was full of hands-on fun and exciting community connections!
Youth Robotics Class
We hosted our very first Reboot Robotics Youth Class for students ages 8–12—and it was a hit! Students teamed up to build and customize their robots, then put them to the test in a friendly game-style competition. We were inspired by their enthusiasm and problem-solving—and we’re already looking forward to doing it again.
50/50 Raffle at Lucas Oil Speedway
Our team had a blast at Lucas Oil Speedway hosting a 50/50 raffle during Military & Veteran Appreciation Night. We sold $906 in tickets, and were thrilled that a veteran won the drawing! The other half of the proceeds goes to support Reboot Robotics. We’re so grateful for the support, and we even got to enjoy some of the races too!
Support Reboot Robotics
We still need some essential items for our new space! If you'd like to help, check out our Walmart Registry to support our students and programs:
🔗 https://www.walmart.com/registry/RR/1d100a08-5333-49cb-b676-27764a7f2186
Want to help us keep growing?
That’s a Wrap!
From hands-on builds to powerful community moments, July was packed with purpose and progress. We’re incredibly thankful for your continued support—it helps us grow and reach more students with meaningful STEM experiences.
August is shaping up to be even more exciting, with the new FLL game, team meetings restarting, and events on the calendar. Stay connected, and don’t forget to check out our website and social media for the latest updates.
And if you’ve made it this far, here’s a little sneak peek: exciting things are working their way into Reboot Robotics! We’re planning a STEM Lab monthly event and looking into other fun outreach ideas.
Also—I (Nicole) just got back from the Midwest STEM Conference held at Missouri S&T! I had an amazing time, learned so much, and came home with more ideas than I can currently pursue. Keep your eyes on our social media—some posts will be dropping over the next week highlighting the event!
And shhh… don’t let the secret out too soon, but I also brought back some science goodies I’ll be giving away to local homeschool families! I can’t wait to spill all the details!
As always, we’d love to hear from you! Your feedback helps us grow, so feel free to share your thoughts, ideas, or questions.
Until next time, keep building, exploring, and dreaming big with us!
📧 Contact us: info@rebootrobotics.org
