3rd Annual Jersey Shore Makerfest Set For Saturday In Toms River

TOMS RIVER, NJ — Come feed your creativity and marvel at the creativity of others Saturday in Toms River as the Toms River Regional School District hosts its third annual Jersey Shore Makerfest.

The event at the Pine Belt Arena and adjacent Toms River High School North is simultaneously an expo and a place to join in the creative energy. It runs from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m.

There's 3,000 feet of space where creative minds of all ages can play-work with a variety of tools and materials. There's 75 “booths” organized by students, educators, and community members who consider themselves makers, offering hands-on interactive experiences.

There are 20-minute inspirational "EdTalks," one-hour workshops, robotics demonstrations and competitions in the main gym, which has been dubbed the Roborena, and more.

New this year are the Jersey Shore Hackathon and the Toms River United Sustainability Team Green Fair, which will be taking place at the same time. A hackathon is a problem-solving competition, where groups are presented with a task and some limits, and must develop a way to complete the task. Hackathons have produced a variety of items for solving real-life problems such as providing clean drinking water when clean water is not available.

The district says participants are coming from around the tri-state area, from cooks to floral designers, hobbyists to professionals.

"Model trains and 3D printers mix with insects, lasers, and clothes made of paper. You can learn to control a robot (before they control us!), find out how to do kitchen science, spin with wool, or fly a drone. At Makerfest, experiencing is believing," the school district says on its Jersey Shore Makerfest website.

Sponsors cover the costs of set up, equipment, and materials (and sometimes competition prizes), making the event free to attend, but pre-registration is requested.

Register by clicking here and print your own ticket. Bring that ticket to Makerfest and turn it in at the ticket booth to enter to win one of 10 robot package prizes!

Click here for more information.

Photos via Toms River Regional School District