When not programming robots to life with motor controllers and polycarbonate parts, BOHS’s robotics team has another project they are passionate about: providing care packages to community frontline workers.

From Jan. 18 to Jan. 22, Robotics Team 7157 (Mubotics) donated 337 care packages filled with coupons, snacks, and sweets to Orange County frontline workers including employees at St. Jude Medical Center, the Brea and Fullerton Fire Department, and clinics in Southern California.

Mubotics is a combined group of BOHS and Sunny Hills High School students that compete in FIRST robotics competitions and plan outreach events. Since the robotics season was cancelled in April 2020 due to the COVID-19 pandemic, the Mubotics team wanted to give back to the community through a variety of service projects. 

One of the health clinics that received care packages from Mubotics was Ryu Physical Therapy in Los Angeles. “The donations were an unexpected surprise [that] brought joy to the uncertainty that many frontline workers live through,” Javier Rivadeneyra, physical therapy aide at Ryu Physical Therapy, said.

The Mubotics team raised nearly $13,000 worth of product donations from contacting over 160 businesses all across the U.S. Although their initial goal was to raise $3,000 dollars in two months, they managed to surpass their objective by $10,000 dollars. 

Jinhee Lee, junior, was in charge of leading the care package service project and says that she “wanted to give back” in appreciation for the community that helped sustain the group when teams were actively competing.

Soojung Lee, receptionist at Choice Physical Therapy, was grateful for the “warm-hearted people in the world supporting us” because the care packages “made us happy and motivated to work.”  

Clara Lee, Mubotics president, is “very satisfied with the results that the team was able to impact the community” and expressed how impressed she was with how much the team “was able to grow this year despite the pandemic.”

The team’s projects started in December 2020 when the Mubotics team assembled 7157 face shields of plastic sheets and 3D-printed headbands for healthcare workers in the height of the pandemic, and the team is planning to continue this effort in 2021. 

Jang is proud of the accomplishments of the robotics team: “We not only get to thank our heroes, but we also worked together effectively as a team.”