New robotics team to showcase work in Roanoke Christmas parade

ROANOKE, Va. (WDBJ) - People from across our hometowns will line the streets of downtown Roanoke as the city’s Christmas parade at 6:30 p.m. is set to bring holiday cheer to the Valley Friday night.

Hundreds of people and organizations take part in the parade every year, whether walking or riding on decorative floats and cars. But for Star City Robotics, it will be the first time participating in the parade as a newly formed team.

Star City Robotics is a team made of 8th grade and high school students from across the Roanoke Valley. The organization was formed after seeing a need in the area for a robotics team.

The students build and design robots for competitions. They will be showcasing some of their work in the Christmas parade. They said it’s a great way to let the community know who they are and hopefully recruit more students to join their team.

“For the Christmas Day parade we came up with the idea to have a sleigh, presents and just have a simple robot driving around to get ourselves out there,” said Star City Robotics team member Zach Young.

“When you’re thinking about the word robot, this is typically what you would think about, but it really shows that ‘robotics team,” said Star City Robotics team member Nicholas Young.

“I think this is a really interesting opportunity to see what robotics is like, because I think there are a lot of necessary professions that require robotics and these skills that you learn from this, and I also think it’s a great opportunity to meet new people,” said Star City Robotics team member Max Weiss.

The team is excited to present its work to the community as it prepares to kick off its first competition season January 4.