Photo by Sydney Cromwell.
Birmingham Organization of Recreational Geeks (BORG) founder Sally Kuhn, right, teaches the Fisher family — Kylee, Sullivan and Jackson, as well as daughter Campbell, not pictured — about basic electronics during a meeting at the Homewood Public Library on Oct. 21. BORG hosts free meetups on the third Saturday of each month at the library.
From 3-D printing and software to leatherworking and pottery, founder Sally Kuhn wants BORG (Birmingham Organization of Recreational Geeks) to offer a little bit of everything.
Kuhn started BORG around the end of September because she wanted to create her own makerspace — an organization for do-it-yourself and tech hobbies, with members who often host classes and share techniques and materials.
The Red Mountain Makers and MakeBham are two local groups of the sort.
When she first put the idea out there of organizing BORG in Homewood, “We got a phenomenal response,” Kuhn said.
Several people have volunteered to share equipment such as sewing machines, a kiln and a 3-D printer. Though it’s still new, Kuhn said she wants to build the group around being low-cost and open to sharing ideas and methods.
“If you share everything, and you’re open about it, and you’re honest, somebody’s going to come along and say, ‘Hey, I made your project, but I made it better,’” Kuhn said. “And then you learn from them, and then you can improve upon that.”
Since BORG is still so new, Kuhn said she’s surveying people to see what classes and other opportunities they want from the organization. Right now they’re meeting at the Homewood Public Library once a month, and a friend of Kuhn’s has offered her home as a weekend workshop space.
Eventually, they want to fundraise to buy a warehouse space in Homewood that they can stock with equipment and supplies for their members’ full range of hobbies. Fundraising includes not only the building, but also for tools such as laser cutters.
“We need all the help we can get to get off the ground and get a facility up and running,” Kuhn said.
Once BORG is established, Kuhn said, she wants to keep up outreach into the community. Makerspaces draw a tech-oriented crowd, and she wants to use those skillsets to refurbish computers for schools or host young robotics clubs. In November, BORG held a “tech drive” to collect laptops, keyboards and other computer supplies to refurbish and give to families in need, along with a free weekend class.
BORG is selling merchandise such as T-shirts and 3-D-printed keychains, as well as arduino kits and classes, to help raise the funds they need. The kits include materials for basic electronic and computing projects.
Kuhn said they also have a GoFundMe page with a $5,000 goal, at gofundme.com/borgbham-makerspace.
BORG is currently hosting a free meetup on the third Saturday of each month at the Homewood library, from 2-5:30 p.m.
Kids are welcome at the meetups with their parents, Kuhn said. There are also $10 and $20 monthly membership options that come with the ability to vote on organization decisions and get materials at-cost.
Learn more about the group at borgbham.com or facebook.com/BorgBham.
