Category Archives: Organizer

Organizer

I’m rocking my words using WordPress!

One of the organizers of Providence WordCamp is JoyMarie Adamonis-Friedman. She shares her thoughts on WordPress.

“I am a mom and wife first, however writing keeps me grounded. It keeps me sane. It keeps me motivated. I started blogging about 4 years ago and started on a Bloglovin’ page. But being married to a WordPress genius, Jesse Friedman, I was quickly shown the “right” path to take and have since been rocking my words using WordPress. My love for WordPress grew, as I learned on my own site. Since switching over I have helped others jump ship to WordPress and am always up for learning more about how we can better our sites. If you are a blogger like me, I urge you to keep writing, even if you feel you don’t reach anyone. It’s your ART. And I urge you to learn more about what WordPress can do for you.”

Follow JoyMarie at

https://twitter.com/Joyousgirl19

http://www.linkedin.com/pub/joymarie-adamonis/2a/b05/aa4

http://mysensationalkid.com/

About, Organizer

The people involved with WordCamp are “Awesome … but I’m biased”

Rachel Avery Conley is one of the Providence WordCamp Organizers.
What inspires someone to devote the time and energy to being a WordCamp organizer?  What insights can she offer?

Here’s a Q-and-A with Co-chair of Volunteers, Rachel Avery Conley.

What brings you back as one of the organizers this year?  
Rachel- I love being involved in the WordPress community and the Providence WordCamp organizers are a great group of people.

What is your favorite part of WordCamp?
Rachel- The classes and the collaboration.

What do you get out of it?       
Rachel- I have some introvert tendencies, so being able to help with the planning and connecting with people before the event allows me to feel more comfortable and able to absorb more information.

What is your level of comfort with creating and maintaining websites? 
Rachel- I am very comfortable with WordPress, moderate level comfortable with changing CSS and HTML. I can work my way around a database too, but only if I have to!

What do you do with WordPress? 
Rachel- I create content in the form of weekly blogs and website content for creative professionals on WordPress platforms.

What would you say to someone who is thinking about attending WordCamp, but says: “I know nothing about websites and will be totally overwhelmed.”
Rachel- I would suggest that you go and keep your ears open. 80% of it will not be absorbed (but that’s true for MOST attendees at any level), but it will introduce you to key ideas and people that you can then go back and follow on social media and take your learning to the next level. Also, all WordCamps are taped and available to watch online, so you can also go back and watch it again to really understand it. But if you don’t go, you don’t know what you are missing!

What would you say to someone who says: “I know so much about websites and WordPress there’s nothing I could get out of WordCamp.” 
Rachel- The best part of WordCamps is the collaboration and core contribution. Also, maybe someone can learn something from you!  Feel free to volunteer at the Happiness Bar (aka Help Desk) and give back to people who could benefit from your expertise!

What impressions do you come away with about the other speakers, volunteers, sponsors and the organizers? 
Rachel- They’re awesome, but I’m biased.

Any advice for a first-time WordCamp attendee?
Rachel- Bring a notebook and lots of business cards.

Rachel Avery Conley is The Photographer’s Blogger, providing Regular Blogging Service and Content Creation for Creative Professionals on WordPress platforms.  She has spoken on the topic of WordPress for Photographers before groups such as the 2013 Inspire Photo Retreat and before a CT Photography Users Group.

{the Photographer’s Blogger} http://blogforphotogs.com/

{twitter}  https://twitter.com/rac_photoblog

{instagram} http://instagram.com/rac_photoblogger

Rachel Avery Conley and Daniella Norwood are the Co-Chairs of Volunteers for Providence WordCamp 2014.

Contact them if you would like to volunteer for all or part of the weekend of September 26 and 27!

About, Organizer

WordPress “has no ‘known’ limits”

Luke Gedeon has been behind every WordCamp held in Providence.  He shares his thoughts on the experiences.

You were the very first Providence WordCamp organizer.  What motivated you to start a WordCamp here in RI?   
The monthly WordPress meet-ups had been going for a couple of years and we had a lot of people who were looking for classes on WordPress. I, and a few others, suggested that they go to the Boston or NYC WordCamp. They asked: why we didn’t have one here? One person in particular, who was really good with publicity, really wanted one in Providence. So I agreed that if she would help find 100 other people to come, we would do it. A few months later we had an organization team together and shortly after that we had our first WordCamp with nearly 200 people!

What were the obstacles and how did you overcome them? 
The biggest obstacle the first year was finding a location. We contacted many local colleges and other organizations and met with quite a few. It was a full-team effort to find the right people and go talk to them.

What surprises (both good and challenging) awaited you? 
I honestly didn’t know what to expect most of the time so very little surprised me. I figured, “I guess that’s just the way it is.”

Why do you think so many people volunteer their time: to organize, speak, work the day of WordCamp? 
Many of us start using WordPress because it makes it possible to build a complete website all by ourselves. Then we continue to work all by ourselves until we realize all of the sudden that we need help with a particular project. It is at that point, if not earlier, that we start looking around for anyone who can help. WordCamp is an opportunity to meet locals who use WordPress and also meet some of the most active WordPress enthusiasts from around the world.

Speaking and organizing are two great ways to get to know more of the people who can help you most on your next project. It is also a great way to get name recognition and become know as an expert or leader in the community.

Another reason to volunteer is to help support the community that is building the next new feature in WordPress… that feature that you have been wanting for the last six months. WordCamps are where new features get designed and often built.

Where does the Rhode Island WordPress/WordCamp community fit in with the global picture? 
Sitting right between Boston and NYC, we have an opportunity to connect with two of the largest WordPress communities in the world. But for WordCamp, the most important community is the local one. Take the time to meet everyone in you local area. Those contacts will prove invaluable over the next year.

Why do you think WordPress is such a popular platform among website owners/bloggers/developers? 
Rapid setup. I am not going to say easy, because most platforms are “easy.” You can get started quickly, but the real magic is that you can keep learning and do ever more amazing things the more you learn. Most easy platforms have limited flexibility, and more powerful tools have a huge learning curve before you can even put “Hello World” on a page. WordPress does a great job of scaling to your learning level and has no “known” limits.

What is your favorite part of WordCamp?             
My favorite part is the Happiness Bar. It is a great opportunity to give and receive one-on-one help with anything WordPress related.

What is your level of comfort with creating and maintaining websites?     What do you do with WordPress?  
I am very skilled at backend WordPress development in theme, plugins, and core. On the front-end, I am familiar with js and I can match any design. I am still working on developing a design sense that can detect client tastes and that will communicate client priorities.

How much coding/web development/other will an attendee need to know to get something out of WordCamp? 
The more of the basics you can learn prior to WordCamp the more you will benefit from it, but really you can start from anywhere.

What would you say to someone who says: “I know nothing about websites and will be totally overwhelmed.” 
Every time there is an opening in your Saturday schedule, visit the Happiness Bar for one-on-one help.

What would you say to someone who says: “I know so much about websites and WordPress there’s nothing I could get out of WordCamp.”    
I really doubt it. The people who build WordPress are attending these camps on a regular basis. We use these events as a time to brainstorm ideas for future versions of WordPress and to work on code together.

Any advice for a first-time WordCamp attendee?    
Meet people, ask a lot of questions, take notes on who said what, get contact info for follow-up.

Luke Gedeon is a Web and Business Developer specializing in pre-launch businesses, and non-profits. He is currently building several thousand free websites for churches.

About, Organizer

“I love pushing the envelope and seeing how far it will go”

Jesse Friedman is Lead Organizer for this year’s Providence WordCamp.  He is also a frequent speaker at WordCamps around the country.   Why did he agree to step into the Lead Organizer position for this year’s Providence WordCamp?

What motivates you to put the time and effort into WordCamp?
Jesse- I firmly believe in giving back to a community that has done so much for me.

What are the obstacles and how do you overcome them?
Jesse- The biggest obstacle is putting on a conference when it’s not your day job. Carving out that much time takes dedication. I’m lucky to have a really awesome team of organizers who help me stay on track.

Why do you think so many people volunteer their time: to organize, to speak, to work the day of WordCamp?
Jesse- From my experience most people who volunteer recognize that WordPress wouldn’t exist otherwise. It’s comprised of code written by volunteers.

People joke that Rhode Island is “a speed bump between NYC and Boston.” What are the advantages/disadvantages of hosting a WordCamp in a small state nestled between those cities?
Jesse – I agree people do say that, but Technology and our Community is not bound by state lines. New England has a great WordPress and Tech community and we plan to draw people from all over the area. Last year we had people flying across the country to our little state to enjoy WordCamp.

Where does the Rhode Island WordPress/WordCamp community fit in with the global picture?
Jesse- We are one piece of the puzzle. The bigger picture is a singular community that drives WordPress. We are a hub to the local members of that community.

What is your favorite part of WordCamp?
Jesse- The networking, making friends, and working with others. The sessions are pretty sweet too.

What do you get out of it?
Jesse- Other than the extensive knowledge I gain, I meet a lot of awesome people. It’s really great to get to work with everyone, and see our conference bring joy to others

What is your level of comfort with creating and maintaining websites?
Jesse- 100 out of 10

What do you do with WordPress?
Jesse- It’s easier to answer what I don’t do. I love pushing the envelope and seeing how far it will go. In the past I was strictly development but lately I have been spending far more time doing UX (User Experience) and User Advocacy work.

Jesse Friedman is an Internet Business Strategist, Marketer, Developer, Author, Speaker, and Educator.

{Jesse’s website}  http://jes.se.com

{twitter} http://twitter.com/professor

{Facebook} http://facebook.com/wordpressandweb

About, Organizer

Many types of talents helps everyone get something out of WordCamp

Kay Belardinelli once again is bringing her talents to help organize the 2014 Providence WordCamp.  She says she’s looking forward to another great weekend of learning and networking.   “WordCamp is great because it caters to people who are at many different points of the web design technical spectrum. Some are talented designers, some are expert programmers, and some are curious newcomers. Having so many different types of people helps expand everyone’s perspective, which is pretty cool. Being an organizer gives me the opportunity to meet more of those people and help build that community.”

Kay Belardinelli is a UI/UX Designer at Batchbook and Owner of Kanga Bell Co. 

About, Organizer

Bring your laptop and lots of questions!

What inspires someone to devote the time and energy to being a Providence WordCamp organizer? What insights can she offer?

Here’s a Q-and-A with Organizer and Co-Chair of Volunteers, Daniella Norwood.

  • What brings you back as one of the organizers this year?

Danni – WordCamp is a wonderful event with amazing people helping out to make it a wonderful success. It’s working with the co-organizers and volunteers that brought me back.

  • What is your favorite part of WordCamp?

Danni – My favorite part of WordCamp is meeting new people in the community.

  • How much does an attendee need to know about creating a website to get something out of WordCamp?

Danni- None.

  • Any advice for a first-time WordCamp attendee?

Danni- Bring your laptop and lots of questions.

  • What impressions do you come away with about the other speakers, volunteers, sponsors, and organizers?

Danni- They are awesome!

  • What do you do with WordPress?

Danni- My company builds purpose-driven websites and we help small to mid-size businesses with online marketing.

Danni Norwood is a developer and online marketer. She’s the owner of ellajdesigns.com  and also a member of the West Bay BNI.

twitter: ellajdesigns
danni@ellajdesigns.com

Daniella Norwood and Rachel Avery Conley are the Co-Chairs of Volunteers for Providence WordCamp 2014.

Contact them if you would like to volunteer for all or part of the weekend of September 26 and 27!