I’m excited to announce the coordinators for this year’s Creations for Charity! They will be helping me with the fundraiser and distributing Lego in 4 major cities in the US: Chicago, Grand Rapids, Dallas, and Los Angeles. Here are short bios we have written for you to get to know us better.
Nannan Zhang Founder I have been a part of the online Lego community for 7 years and I am a medical student in real life. It’s my pleasure to see Lego builders use our hobby in a unique and meaningful way to give to charity. Each year, Creations for Charity has exceeded my expectations in the enthusiasm from the community and the amount of Lego we’re able to give to the kids. Thanks a bunch for your support!
Tracy and Chris Dale Sales Coordinators We, Tracy & Chris, run Brick-A-Thon (our store) out of our house in a rural area of Florida on 2.5 acres of land. We love the peace and quiet, many interesting critters of the area, and having ample space for our LEGO, and other, endeavors. Chris is originally from Wisconsin and moved to Florida in 2006, while Tracy came down in 1994 from Portland, Oregon. We both love old video games (as well as new), animals (we have 4 cats and an Albino Pac-Man Frog), baseball, football and related memorabilia, and find enjoyment in life’s little oddities. One more thing to note, Tracy has loved bricks since she was a little kid and came out of the dark ages at the age of 33, while Chris got introduced to LEGO properly upon arrival in Florida. We’re both thrilled we can help out with this year’s Fundraiser and look forward to working with everyone who joins in!
Don Wilson Grand Rapids Distribution Coordinator I have been collecting LEGO for nearly 30 years. As a favorite hobby, it has helped me tremendously in preparation for my career as a Scenic Designer and Technical Director for Theater. The Aspects of the design process apply to both scenic design and building with LEGO. The challenges of creating a specific desired look designed with the little plastic bricks which my mom used to scream about when she would step on one left in the carpet, is the biggest appeal to me: creating something great out of a limited supply of parts. I am entering an exciting time, a time when I am able to begin sharing these things with my two boys. Being part of the online community has connected me with too many great people to list. When Nannan and I set out to start Creations for Charity, we had no idea how much support we would get. Thanks for helping be a part of another tremendous year for kids around the country this holiday season.
Josh Baum Chicago Distribution Coordinator For as long as I can remember, I have always loved playing with Lego! The ability to take “plain” building blocks and make them into anything I wanted was always enthralling – one moment I was a swashbuckling pirate, and then I was in space protecting a space settlement. I recently started getting involved in Lego Minifigure customization (in which I particularly love using BrickArms). Some of my favorite figures include my most recent military figures which used items from a number of Lego accessory vendors as well as cloth and office items routinely used around the home. In real life, I perform opera for a living (I’m a lyric tenor) and just finished performing this summer in New York. I also direct opera and teach voice at a private university just outside of Chicago.
Ethan Fang Dallas/Ft. Worth Distribution Coordinator I am Ethan and you may recognize me by my alias – Donut! I have been active in the LEGO forums since 2005 though my admiration for our favorite brick dates back to 90s, when I received my first system set. My favorite themes are castle, pirates, and most recently Star Wars. I am not much of a builder; however, in the near future I hope to create a large battle diorama. Aside from LEGO, I love to draw, read comics, and play old console games.
“Snowman” Los Angeles Distribution Coordinator I’ve been building LEGO practically since I could walk. The Castle and Pirate themes were favorites of my youth, but the Star Wars theme has most of my attention now. I work in the entertainment industry and relish any chance to inspire coworkers to get back into building. My girlfriend is a saint for tolerating all of my building and my cat has thankfully stopped biting the bricks!