CAMDEN - Makers unite! The first annual  Midcoast Mini Maker Faire is today, Saturday, September 7, 2013 at the Camden Public Library and adjacent Amphitheatre. For those who are wondering, a Maker Faire is:

"Part science fair, part county fair, and part something entirely new, Maker Faire is an all-ages gathering of tech enthusiasts, crafters, educators, tinkerers, hobbyists, engineers, science clubs, authors, artists, students, and commercial exhibitors. All of these ‘makers’ come to Maker Faire to show what they have made and to share what they have learned."

Makers of all types will converge in Camden for a family-friendly showcase of invention, creativity and resourcefulness – a celebration of the Maker movement. Exhibitors/Makers do not pay for a booth and admission is free.

Andrew White is one of the organizers, along with Camden Library staff member Olga Zimmerman, who was initially the driving force behind getting the concept of the Mini Maker Faire to the Midcoast. White who often works with found materials in his own work said traveling to California and seeing what their Maker's Faire offered "just tapped into Silicon Valley and the creative world that exist there. Think of Burning Man community, the creative part of it, not the Bacchanalian part.  It's nothing you've ever seen around here before. California's Maker Faire is a known entity, it's a new thing, an idea that's happening across the country, empowering people to be innovators."

From cardboard robots to 3-D printed jewelry to interactive art installations, Camden’s Mini Maker Faire will be the bomb. The whole purpose of this is to “encourage exhibits that are interactive and that highlight the process of making things.” In other words, ask questions. Get up close, poke around. See if you can make one yourself. One of the featured Makers is local student Ella Simon. For her 8th grade school project at Ashwood Waldorf School, she created the iCycle Bicycle, a pedal-powered ice cream maker (stationary or mobile). See a full lineup of all the participating Makers here.

Along with White and Zimmerrman, other organizers include Maggi Blue, Ken Gross, Kelly Finlay, Nikki Maounis, and Ollie Wilder. The committee has said this is not going to be a one-off event. The Midcoast Mini Maker Faire will be an annual community-focused annual event, only, smaller, but will follow the Maker Faire motto of celebrating do-it-yourself creativity and tinkering. Their motto: “Make, create, craft, recycle, build, think, play, and be inspired by celebrating arts, crafts, engineering, food, music, science, and technology!”

Featuring both established and emerging local Makers, the Midcoast Mini Maker Faire will be a family-friendly celebration featuring rockets and robots, DIY science and technology, urban farming and sustainability, alternative energy, bicycles, unique hand-made crafts, music and local food, and educational workshops and installations. 

Sponsored by the Camden Public Library as its sponsor and the Midcoast Magnet as a co-sponsor, the Mini Maker Faire will run from 11:00 a.m. to 3:00 p.m.

Kay Stephens can be reached at news@penbaypilot.com