Pictured: Carlin Skinner of Bohemian Bike Club weaves leather at Hacker Lab's first Holiday Bazaar.
Last year, we moved in a major headquarters’ expansion; grew our membership base; made new partners like community colleges and non-profits; launched our most successful maker market; and kept supporting the city’s makers and entrepreneurs for a more inclusive Sacramento.
We wrote about it all. Take a look at our most read posts of 2019 below — or let us know how you did in 2019. And let us know — did you make moves while using our coworking space, maker equipment, classes or program? Let us know in our Member Survey.2019 was an exciting year. We’re even more excited about 2020, when we strive to serve more makers, entrepreneurs and anyone with a dream in the Sacramento region who needs a space, resources and community to take their next step.
Big thanks to our sponsors, SMUD, the City of Sacramento, Consolidated Communications, Sierra College, Sacramento City College, SBDC and so many others who supported us. That includes members - we couldn't do it without you.
Special thanks also to Nuron Newsome who captured many shots of our community this year!
Did you know we have New Year specials? 50 percent off your first month, or $400 off annually.
1) Hacker Lab & SBDC launch mentorship program
Read all about it and sign-up here or here.
Grabbing coffee. A word of advice. Sometimes, that’s all you need. Our team began partnering with the Capital Region Small Business Development Center to connect entrepreneurs, makers and anyone who uses our space with one-on-one business mentorship. Sign-up for mentorship!
2) Local wood now available at Hacker Lab, by Sacramento Tree Foundation
Read all about it and stop in to look at our wood here
One of our biggest feel-good surprises was partnering with the Sac Tree Foundation, which harvests trees slated for removal and makes them available in their yard — and now, Hacker Lab. Imagine crafting the perfect table made from a downed tree of the City of Trees.That story and sense of place adds value — whether you care about a good story, sustainability, cash or all of the above. We're so grateful to STF for making their wood and work accessible!
3) Year-and-a-half: How Josh Aguilar learned to code, win hackathons & compete at Facebook
Read all about it here
Josh Aguilar left 7 years in nursing to reinvent himself. Through coding classes and grinding, making websites for friends and joining our community, he taught himself to code; built his own full-stack development startup; won a healthcare hackathon and competed at Facebook.Rumor has it, Josh now works for IBM. We’re proud! Read about Josh’s journey above!.
4) New community helps makers succeed — including one who traveled across the U.S. to join Hacker Lab
Read all about it here
Don Wells moved from Ohio across the country to use our space. Wow! Now, he’s grinding at leather-making, crafting the most professional wallets, shaving kits and belts anyone could ask for. He even made his van at the lab.Or, learn more about his journey using our Makers Gonna Make group, which meets on the first Tuesday of the month around 6 p.m. in midtown as a supportive community for sellers above.
5) Sacramento Hacker Lab is on the MOVE - Details in Blog
Read all about it here.
We moved from our lovingly-painted and community-raised home on I Street to the fresh slate of 2533 R Street, a 50 percent increase in size that would allow us to serve more makers, events and creatives.The added space allowed us to move in new equipment, including a plasma cutter and Tormach CNC (thanks SCC!); hold major events including a Verizon 5G art show, monthly Second Saturday art exhibits, meetings of state officials and more.
Now, we’re bringing that community-painting back with local muralists. Thanks to our office holders, members and community for being part of our move!
6) Hacker Lab joins forces with Sac City College
Read all about it here.
Last year, Sac City College and Hacker Lab entered into a partnership to allow students to use our space while taking select SCC MAKR courses or who are from underserved communities.We’re proud to be part of this movement making community college and entrepreneurship accessible. Read about the latest on the partnership, including about an online coding class you can take this January to access Hacker Lab FREE, or the initial announcement above.
7) Pathways: Making Opportunity Accessible in Sacramento
Read all about it here.
We’re part of a movement in Sacramento to make the city more accessible, economy more equal and help neighbors get the lives and careers they want.Our partners, from the City of Sacramento to SMUD, Valley Vision, Kaiser Permanente and more, want anyone to be able to start a business, support small business development and create a more inclusive Sacramento economy.
With their support, we finished the first round of our Pathways scholarship program, allowing anyone with a vision for improving their lives to join HL who couldn't otherwise afford it, and started a new cohort with the help of SMUD (here). Sign-up for the next cohort to launch in Spring, 2020 (soon!).
8) Rocklin Hacker Lab 2019 Plan
Read all about it here.
We shared some plans for Rocklin at the start of the year, as well as shared our progress in the space.Rocklin is one of our largest spaces and offers its own community (esp. Sierra College, whose robotics students and others use at a discounted rate); specialties (industrial sewing, fashion and photography); art on the walls (with frequent art shows by theArts Council of Placer County); and a place for established businesses, including a tattoo parlor and medical-grade cannabis testing company tCheck.
Check out Rocklin’s classes here. Special shout-out to the Sierra College Robotics Club, who won big using our community's tools.
9) Bazaar: Get the best local gifts Saturday from these awesome makers
Read all about it here.
We were proud to offer our first Holiday Bazaar to members as a thank you for being part of our community through the move and in general. We survive because of our community, members and the wider Sacramento community. Over 20 vendors and hundreds of attendees supported local businesses! Many of the sellers were first-timers, who founded their maker business while participating in our free Makers Gonna Make craft seller group. The group, in a blog post above, helps anyone reach their goals. Check out our follow-ups in pictures here and here.
10) Lin Fei Fei's new mural on the tools we use, and a call for six muralists
Read all about it here.
Lastly, with the help of Artists of Sacramento (https://www.facebook.com/artistsofsacramento/) we began working with local muralists to paint our space in exchange for a one-year membership and mural supplies. We already have a few so far, including from Lin Fei Fei and Jose DiGregorio. Community is the heart of what we do. That’s one of the things we build at Hacker Lab, using our minds, hearts and — hands, which Fei focuses on in her piece above.
