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WordCamp Seattle 2014

by Judy Schwartz Haley | Creating a Living, Learning, Seattle

The first thing that struck me at WordCamp Seattle was the inclusive sense of community. People from all walks of life, hobby bloggers and coders, grandmas, hairdressers, and hackers, came together to discuss WordPress, how to use it, and how to improve it. People were so friendly, no snobbery, no cliques, no standoffishness…

I have attended small scale blog conferences before, but this was the first time to attend an event of this kind for me.

What is WordCamp?

WordCamps are non-profit conferences that are organized and run entirely by volunteers. No need to break the bank on wardrobe or ticket prices. This is definitely a come as you are event – be yourself, no one is there to see your shoes – and the amazingly low ticket price of $20 is offset by the many sponsors who make these conferences possible. I spent some time speaking to reps from the sponsors, and these people really get the community focus of WordCamp, and WordPress as a whole.

Nearly 700 people converged on the HUB at the University of Washington for WordCamp Seattle this year. It was huge, and so well run. There were panels for rank beginners and seasoned developers, and everyone in between.

So many useful sessions

The schedule was packed, so many talks from which to choose! Here are the sessions I attended (slides used by the presenters linked below):

How to Pick a Theme that Doesn’t Suck by Stacey Lane
I Started a Blog, Now What? by Kimberly Gauthier
Making Sense of SEO for WordPress: a Panel with Jennifer Bourn, Joyce Grace, Scott Eklund, Michelle Castillo, Heather Johnson
Free and Low Cost Ways to Grow an Amazing Blog by Kate Stull
The WordPress Community + Relationships = a Booming Business by Alex McClafferty
Speed as a Feature: Getting a Handle on Page Load Time by Zack Tollman

So many great talks, and of course, there were four different talks going through most of the sessions. But the slide shows and video of the events has been made public, so you can see what you missed at a later date. A note about the videos, there is one long video for each of the three rooms that covers all of the talks that took place in the room, so get yourself a really big cup of coffee before sitting down to watch.

This conference was just so rich with useful information and resources that two weeks later I am still processing everything in my head.

But that was just day one. Day two upped the community aspect in a completely different way…

Contributors Day

I wasn’t really sure what they meant by Contributors Day, but it turns out they take the community built and open source aspects of WordPress pretty seriously.

Contributors day took place in a smaller shared workspace called the Impact Hub Seattle in Pioneer Square. Participants gathered together to contribute to the WordPress product. The group divided into teams to work on everything from documentation to help desk questions, to directly addressing bugs, to working on updates. No need to have advanced programming skills. People contribute as they are able to, and there is place for everyone who wants to participate.

Mind.

Blown.

OK, so obviously, I’m new to the world of open source, but the more I learn, the more I want to learn. I’ve been using WordPress since 2008, but until now, I never bothered to learn much about how it was built. Now that I’ve seen that process in action, I want more.

I love this world I stumbled into.

WordPress Meetups

I learned that there are regular WordPress Meetups here in Seattle (also, around the world for those of you not in Seattle). I will be checking these out, so look for me at a Seattle WordPress Meetup soon.

Creating fun

by Judy Schwartz Haley | Parenting & Family

My girl has a knack for creating fun wherever she goes.

There are several different play structures at this park, but where does she want to play?

on the bike rack.

bike rack at the playground - creating fun

I love this playful, joyful approach to life. I relish in it. It makes me happy to see her explore things in new ways. I love things like bike racks being used for other than their intended purposes. This is where creativity and invention kicks in.

She’s getting so big now – taking on more challenges, like tree climbing.

She’s growing so strong, so tall, so confident…

I hope she doesn’t outgrow her sense of playfulness and whimsy. I hope, in the life before her, she continues to find creative ways (but not too dangerous, I’m still a mama bear) to have fun.

Camp Sparkle

by Judy Schwartz Haley | Cancer, Community, Parenting & Family

On the corner of Broadway and Union, on Seattle’s Capitol Hill, sits an old brick building with a red door, and four stately white columns in front. Magic happens in this building.

This building is the home of Gilda’s Club Seattle, and Camp Sparkle.

When Gilda Radner was diagnosed with cancer, she learned first hand how lonely cancer can be. Gilda’s Club was created so no one else would have to go through the cancer experience alone.

Gilda’s Club is not just for the cancer patient, but their family members and close friends as well. A cancer diagnosis impacts the whole family. We all need a place where we can be ourselves, and it feels good to have a place where we feel normal, where others understand what we are going through. Gilda’s Club does this with support groups, lectures, and other helpful events for people with cancer and their loved ones.

Camp Sparkle

Camp Sparkle is one of the ways that Gilda’s Club helps the children of cancer patients.

Sometimes, the world turns upside down when Mom or Dad is diagnosed with cancer, or even dies from cancer. This is complicated when adults reflexively avoid conversations about cancer, life and death, or deep issues are distilled into platitudes that are more dismissive than helpful.

Camp Sparkle provides a safe environment for kids to talk about cancer, and helps provide kids with a toolbox of skills to name and discuss their feelings and to deal with this and other challenges life will throw at them.

And Camp Sparkle is FUN!

My girl turned 5 a few months ago, so this year she was old enough to go to Camp Sparkle. She had so much fun. She came home with piles of artwork each day of the week, and at the end of the week she brought home a journal. She went on a field trip every day. She made new friends, learned about compassion, and respect, and self care. And I am so impressed with the questions she’s been asking since camp. Thoughtful questions about things it never occurred to me to bring up with her.

She’s a happy camper, and I’m so glad she got to go to Camp Sparkle.

Gilda’s Club has clubhouses across the country, and Camp Sparkle is free for the children of all Gilda’s Club members, ages 5-18.