2018 Chattanooga Make-a-Thon Recap
Thank you to the Chattanooga community for making the Chattanooga Make-a-Thon a hit!
September 29, 2018 marked the second Chattanooga Make-a-Thon. There were over 50 makers and volunteers, joining forces to help serve 13 meaningful organizations across the Chattanooga area and Tennessee as a whole. We couldn’t have done it without the generous support of Causeway and the Community Foundation of Greater Chattanooga.
Selecting nonprofits was a feat because there were so many tremendous, impactful organizations that applied for this year’s Chattanooga Make-a-Thon.
The nonprofits that we chose tackle issues including eliminating human trafficking across the state, supporting children and their families who have suffered severe abuse and improving life for women and girls. Learn more about the nonprofits that were selected.
To start off the Make a Mark season here in Chattanooga, we held a kick off event including nonprofits, makers and community members.
The Kick Off is a natural extension of our purpose — “foster an environment where community organizations and visual communicators can engage with one another to better our world.”
When we started Make a Mark in 2014, we aimed to create valuable and effective materials for nonprofits. What came out of that first event and what continues to grow is community. This is a community of people that learn from each other and help serve our world.
A special thank you to Oddstory Brewing for hosting us and to Jack Brown’s Beer & Burger Joint for the snacks.
Following the Kick Off, we held the second annual Chattanooga Make-a-Thon on September 29th. We started the day on Floor Five of The Edney in the Innovation District with a fantastic breakfast spread by Dish T’Pass, delicious coffee by Velo Coffee Roasters and shirts provided by Real Thread and designed by maker Jake Ryan Saunders of Faceless Creative.
A huge thank you to all of the kind volunteers that helped us set up the day prior and the morning of before the sun had even risen. We couldn’t do it without you!
Makers spent the entire morning working together in teams creating printed materials, websites, brands and strategies for those who are serving our community in the most powerful and significant ways.
The 12 hour crunch didn’t stop makers from taking breaks to enjoy snacks from Lupi’s Pizza Pies and Frothy Monkey.
Throughout the day, the nonprofits joined their teams for a brief feedback session to review the work, give input and get excited for the final product.
This was the first chance following the planning meetings that the nonprofit representatives got to meet up with their teams to see what the makers had been working on all morning.
The afternoon was spent taking valuable feedback from the nonprofits and turning it into action, as well as enjoying some juice shots from Juice Bar Northshore.
After the rush to complete projects, Demos + Drinks kicked off with tasty treats from FEED Co., Bread & Butter, Oddstory Brewing and Chattanooga Whiskey.
Demos are a chance for the makers to show off their work from the day to the other makers and nonprofits. Demos + Drinks are not competitive, but a show of community, appreciation and celebration.
Below are some examples of the work completed at the event. Stay tuned in the following weeks for case studies.
This is more than just an event. I learned this during our first year in Roanoke — Blacksburg, but it is a constant reminder at each make-a-thon. There is some world-class design, development, video production, marketing and social media work done at each make-a-thon, but the spirit of the event is creating a safe and welcoming community where the nonprofits feel like their work in the community is truly valued and appreciated by that area’s most talented and generous creatives, and where the makers feel like their highly billable skills can be put to use in service of something greater than themselves.
The tears and smiles and hugs come from this show of human compassion is something that gives me chills each time!
You can see more photos from the event in our Facebook albums. Thank you to Caroline Jewell and Kiersten Williams with Make Beautiful for helping us document the day!
Thank you!
A special thank you to Causeway and the Community Foundation of Greater Chattanooga for supporting our efforts.
And thanks to our organizational sponsors: Abstract, Balsamiq, Sketch, Real Thread, Mindsense and Sticker Mule.
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