San Antonio, Texas – Welcome, everyone—STEM enthusiasts, innovators, and leaders of all ages—welcome to our FIRST Robotics Competition! Wait a second… hold up! This isn’t a robotics event at all, is it? Nope, scratch that. Today, we’re telling a different kind of story. This is about one of our own—the voice behind the mic, the energy in the room, the one and only Kirby Wilson, Emcee and Game Announcer legend.
His FIRST in Texas journey began in middle school on a FIRST LEGO League team. After transitioning to FIRST Tech Challenge, he joined team 3310, Blackhawk Robotics. Over the next four years, he juggled roles in scouting, design, build, pit crew and even as a human player. After graduation, Kirby attended Texas A&M University, where in 2017, he and several fellow FIRST alumni founded a club. This club aimed to connect alumni with volunteering and mentoring opportunities, and participation in the Robot 3 Days Challenge. But it was as an Emcee in Training at an Austin regional event in 2017 that Kirby found his calling. While he dabbled in other roles, including webcast operator, leader queuer, and even judging, Emcee/Game Announcer always held a special place in his heart. “I love being able to bring up the energy of the crowd to match that of the drive teams, who are giving their all to draw out the competitive potential of their bots,” Kirby shares.
He dives into his most memorable moment—a few years ago Team 8177, Vector, re-branded to have the character Vector (orange track suit, bowl cut, glasses, supervillain) from Despicable Me be their official mascot. He talks about when he was doing his rounds, updating team information before the start of competition and noticing orange jumpsuits and a huge cut out of Vector. That’s when his emcee powers activated, and he knew he had to include something special in their introduction. When he introduced them, he made sure to include a reference from the movie: “Getting ready to steal the moon, it’s team 8177!” The team was ecstatic, and even more teams approached him later, pitching fun introduction ideas of their own.
When asked about the most rewarding aspect of his volunteering experience, Kirby reflects on the joy of announcing awards at the end of each event. “Seeing the reactions of excitement from the students who have put so much time and effort into their teams always brings a smile to my face… it’s always encouraging to know what bright, hardworking minds are coming out of the FIRST program and I can’t wait to see what they all do next.”
Through volunteering with FIRST in Texas, Kirby was able to connect with new people with similar interests and a support system that helped him through college. “They have inspired me to become the person I am today, and always drive me to get better every day, and if I can have even a slight percentage of that level of impact on someone attending an event, then all the time and effort will have been worth it.” We thank you, Kirby, for your initiative to keeping our alumni connected and for the creative energy you bring to every event!
And just like that, our story comes to an end. But before we go, let’s hear it one more time for the star of the show- Kirby Wilson! Whether it’s introducing teams, calling out scores, or hyping up a crowd, Kirby reminds us all of the power of passion and dedication. Behind every great event, there’s someone who makes it extraordinary. We couldn’t do it without our volunteers, so thank you for joining us, and until next time- keep cheering, keep empowering students in STEM and keep the spirit of innovation alive!