Maia Proulx, a STARBASE instructor, said the open house idea started as a way to show donors how their money is being used and give the community an opportunity to see the facility.

“When we got shut down, we didn’t have funding,” Proulx said. “And then the Economic Generator Network recognized the community need for the local kids … they stepped in and donated enough money to keep us going.”

Proulx explained that when STARBASE closed earlier this year due to lack of funding, EGN donated enough to help the facility provide services to students throughout the rest of the school year. EGN also brought in more community donors to support STARBASE.

“They gave us enough funding to make it through the end of the school year, and then we ended up getting our funding back so it wasn’t an issue anyway,” Proulx said. “Most of those donors still said, ‘Hey, we are not going to take our money back. We still want to give you it.’ So this is our way of saying, ‘Hey, this is what you put your money towards. This is what we’re going to do for the kids.'”

News Photo by Kayla Wikaryasz National Honor Society students are seen demonstrating a teamwork building activity for community partners and STARBASE donors.

Proulx said STARBASE wanted to let donors see the STARBASE experience, some of the different technologies at the facility, and to see the progress of current remodeling.

“A lot of people don’t know about STARBASE,” Proulx said. “Another part of it is just getting us out there and letting the community see what we have to offer.”

Proulx said STARBASE is an important facet of Northeast Michigan as it supplements STEM education that public schools might not have the bandwidth to cover. Proulx said that math and reading have taken over the majority of the curriculum in schools, so STARBASE offers opportunities for students to learn about science and military careers.

“Our program is so crucial for this area … for Northeast Michigan … with such a rural area with limited resources … for kids,” Proulx said. “And this really gives them an outlook into what life could be like in different science careers or military careers.”

Steven Tezak, director of the Alpena STARBASE, added that STARBASE is a crucial resource for educators in the area and it is important that every student gets the chance to experience what STARBASE has to offer.

News Photo by Kayla Wikaryasz Jacob Romel, left, and Mason Chrzan, right, are seen demonstrating a circuit building exercise at STARBASE.

“We provide opportunities that students may not normally get to think about their future, to think about what’s out there with STEM careers and figure out a pathway at an early age,” Tezak said.

“That’s the thing that I really appreciated about the EGN is they came out and said to themselves, ‘Hey, without this we are not preparing our future workforce in STEM careers. We are really missing out on an opportunity for making our community stronger,'” he added.

Tezak explained that the open house is an opportunity to connect with donors, to thank them for their donations, and to further connect with the community.

“So, basically we wanted to really just get everybody together in one room and thank them publicly for what they’ve done to support our program,” Tezak said.

Kayla Wikaryasz can be reached at 989-358-5688 or kwikaryasz@TheAlpenaNews.com.

News Photo by Kayla Wikaryasz Maia Proulx, a STARBASE instructor, demonstrates a chemistry experiment for donors and community partners.

News Photo by Kayla Wikaryasz Maia Proulx, a STARBASE instructor, is demonstrating a chemistry experiment for donors and community partners.