Geekspace Gwinnett - Space of the Month

We got started from a few in our core group that got together using Meetup.com to host meetings in a pizza restaurant [says Steve Smith, President of Geekspace Gwinnett]. Geekspace first opened in 2013 in its first smaller location [in Gwinnett County, Georgia, USA]. The rent got beyond what we could sustain, so we put the stuff in storage and waited for a good space. We found a local town called Suwanee that had an initiative to provide education-focused items to the area, and they offered assistance with the current rent. It helps keep the cost down so we can focus on the fun.

We run a load of differing groups at Geekspace Gwinnett, so our calendar is always packed. We have a FIRST [For Inspiration and Recognition of Science and Technology] robotics team (high school), a FIRST Lego League team (much younger kids), and a LAN party group, as well as our normal makers.

We also have monthly meetings to keep up the collaboration. I find that if we all keep in touch, awesome things happen. Many high schools in the area are very tech-focused. We’ll even be working towards our second Girls Who Code workshop this summer.

Any given day, someone is lasering/CNC-ing/crafting/teaching something. Our members are very creative and always bring the best out. Like any initiative, it starts slow, and if you keep it up, people notice and things snowball to bigger, better, cooler stuff.