In the summer of 2008, during the summer holidays, we took a day trip to Tel-Aviv in order to take part in the hit Israeli television series, "Messudarim" (Rich-men). The show is about 4 entrepreneurs who made it big, by developing a gaming device that exercises its users while they play. The first season was very successful in Israel's booming technological community, where many children dream not of becoming actors and singers, but innovators of technology.

We asked the producers of the show if we, as a tech group immersed in innovation, could showcase our robot and present FIRST to a wider audience. The producers agreed to include FIRST, and us, in the third episode of the second season. So we got to work preparing our actor.

Last year's FRC robot was our star in the making, and we prepared it for a "close-up" by fitting it with a WALL-E style head and making it's Aluminum shine. We packed the robot into a car, along with it's controls and two small VEX robots and made our way to the shooting site.

When we arrived we were met with faces in awe (as always when we show the public anything connected to the FRC program) and started shooting right away. In the first sense the robot just drove past the two main actors but still the cast and crew were amazed by our driver's skill.
In a later scene the robot had to hold a platter of sushi, drive through a doorway barely wider then itself, place the sushi on the office desk and drive out in reverse, all while the drivers were hiding behind the desk as not to be caught in the frame. This drove the spectators wild, and we were happy to say that none of it would be possible if not for FIRST, as we truly believe.

The episode we took part of has yet to be aired but we are all very excited to see our creation on national T.V., and we hope we haven't been cut since it would be amazing if all of (or at least a lot of) Israel could see what FIRST and all its participants have achieved. We are hopeful because we are proud to preach the FIRST spirit.

Ma'on Shikma is a living place for people with mental retardation that can't live their every day life without aid of unrestricted people.
Some of our team members went to the dorm to help the people there. Before we went there we made a special "Bingo" game that contains questions about the recent elections precess in Israel and about the current affairs in Israel. In addition to the questions, we also made special tickets for the Bingo game. The tickets were divided to nine squares, while each square contains an answer to one of the questions we made. When a man hears a question that it's answer is one of his nine answers, he marks it. The first one to mark all his nine answers wins the game and gets a doll. After playing bingo with the people there, they started singing songs of Purim holiday.
Steampunk believes that helping people like the people there is very important. At first we were worried to approach them but we quickly internalized that they are people like everyone else, even though they behave are differently.

As the holiday, Purim, came closer, we at SteamPunk #1577 decided to do something good for ourselves and the community for the holiday.
We went to the organization Izi Shapira that is located in our home city in order to help them divide treats into packages for the holiday.
We made a human production line and packed all the candys in short order. The packages we made were handed out to kids all over israel.

At the 8th and the 9th of March, two out of three Israeli Regional FLL competetions were held at the Aviv Highschool gym.
In addition to helping FIRST at the event, SteamPunk #1577 has set a stand and sold cakes to the comers of the event.
All the profits that were collected were donated to the foundation "Roey Lo Ehasr".
The foundation acts among the community, and its goal is minimizing social gaps and promoting children from the concern to thier well-being.
The foundation took on herself to aid the community in order to allow equal oppourtunitys to the children in israel and is working with no profit intentions.
From the actions of the foundation: payment for psychological and didactic diagnosis, help in buying school books, participating in school payments, buying clothes and shoes, dental care and any other required help.