WordCamp Grand Rapids 2018 Swag
| |

Highlights of WordCamp Grand Rapids 2018

ByTim Nolte Updated on

TL;DR – This year was all about people and conversations for me. Oh, and trying my hand at speaking, which I didn’t totally bomb.


Today marked the 4th WordCamp Grand Rapids that I’ve attended. Last year I was just an attendee but this year I stepped things up in a pretty bug way. I was not only a volunteer at the Happiness Bar, but I helped with organize the event, and was even one of the speakers.

https://2018.grandrapids.wordcamp.org/organizers/

https://2018.grandrapids.wordcamp.org/speaker/tim-nolte/

Me Speaking on DevOps and WordPressOne of the things I love about Grand Rapids, and the community is the people. Yet again I felt welcomed as a member of the community, valued for my experiences as a developer and user of WordPress, and encouraged when I had doubts of being a speaker among the likes of @chrislema , @stevegrunwell , @aaroncampbell , @JJJ , @norcross , @rzen , @realjefflarge , @MrKyleMaurer , @marktimemedia , and @Sara11D , just to name a few of some of the incredible line up of speakers. Even with the focus of this years camp being on plugins & tools I can’t see how anyone in attendance would have left feeling they didn’t gain some new knowledge, insight, perspective. I was blown away by the number of stories I heard of people hearing about the WordCamp even just the day before and joining us. I can’t wait for all the talks to be uploaded to @WordPressTV so I can watch all the sessions I missed. I enjoyed getting to know @jboonstra and @fosterthemorgan from @agathongroup during my time at their booth, at the Happiness Bar, and the after party.

JJJ on the Future of the WordPress ComunityThe closing keynote by @JJJ on the future of WordPress, the community, and the online landscape was inspiring with clear calls to action and encouraged our community to continue on the quest of making WordPress what we want it to be.

For me, the day flew by, but at the same time I felt every minute was filled with opportunities to engage and learn. I was honored to work along side @mysweetcate , @KJRichards , @bonnevillessei1 , @thetweeterninja , @NaviKnowsWP , @BGNicolePaschen , @rzen , @realjefflarge , @topher1kenobe to make WordCamp happen. What an awesome team! I’m already looking forward to future camps no matter what my involvement might be!

I really enjoyed hanging out with @natereist , @khchristensen , @rudymalmquist , and @fosterthemorgan at the after party and talking about running. The food at @atwaterbeergr was excellent, and plentiful!

Grand Valley State University: Pew Campus, 401 Fulton St W, Grand Rapids, Michigan 49504

Technical Architect

A Christ-follower, husband, father, and WordPress Developer with Forum One.

Similar Posts

  • /

    Finishing Another Hot Cider Hustle

    ByTim Nolte
    It was cold, wet, windy, and snowy for the #HotCiderHustle this morning, but it was fun to see a few #HWI teammates out on a Saturday morning. I didn’t bring home any medal but I still felt really good about my run given the ground conditions. I made sure to wear my pullover cleats which helped me avoid a lot of slipping and sliding while keeping up my pace.
  • /

    Moving From An Unreliable Water Supply To One They Can Count On

    ByTim Nolte
    The #HWI Team is helping communities in Africa to leave behind their unreliable, and unhealthy, water supplies. Every well that Hope Water helps to put in brings a village a water supplies that will keep them healthy and bring new life and hope. #Run4Water #WhyIRun #GRMarathon Partner With Us: https://timn.me/2Kx7NEr
  • / /

    Knocking Out Another 14 Miles With The Hope Water Team

    ByTim Nolte
    Only $355 more to go before October 20th, #GRMarathon day. That’s another 53 people that will get clean water in Africa. Just another $12.25 a day from partners to hit the goal. Who’s with me? https://timn.me/2Kx7NEr #HWI #Run4Water #WhyIRun It was great to be able to join the Hope Water team again this morning and run with the group. I enjoyed some great conversation with Justin Dykstra. I could sure tell the difference between having someone to run with versus not when I finished the last 4 miles on my own. If you struggle to get out and run I strongly urge you to find a group to run with. The miles melt away when you get into conversation. And you are building real connections…
  • /

    Running Is My One On One Time

    ByTim Nolte
    It’s still a little bit to get used to doing these longer “midweek” runs on a Monday instead of a Tuesday, but I think I’m getting into a groove with it. It’s nice to have a long “easy” run on a Monday where is can spend a lot of time listening to worship music, listening for God’s direction, and presenting the needs of friends and family to Him. I can honestly say that getting our for a morning run has not only been good for my physical health but it’s had a huge impact on my spiritual health as well. I do enjoy group runs but there is something to be said for having time where it’s just you, the pavement, and God. I spent…
  • /

    Some Days Are Just Tough Ones

    ByTim Nolte
    Today’s run started off good but the second half was a tough to get through. It wasn’t a terrible training run but it wasn’t my best. When someone in Sierra Leone needs to make a trip to find water, there can be some good days, or some bad day. Those bad days, when clean water can’t get found, can be the difference between life and death. #HWI #Run4Water #WhyIRun #GRGus Help find clean water: https://timn.me/2Kx7NEr
  • /

    Slowing Down To Speed Up, Monday Run On The Dreadmill

    ByTim Nolte
    In 5 weeks I’ll be running my 5th marathon and representing #HWI and spreading the message for the need of clean water in Africa. #Run4Water #WhyIRun #GRGus With such a short time for training making sure I’m following the plan is really going to be key to finishing well. In that light I took advantage of the treadmill today and set the speed to the slow pace today called for. Deciding to run on the dreadmill(treadmill) didn’t come easy but with the weather being rain & wind with a potential for snow, I decided it was best. Support Clean Water: https://timn.me/2Kx7NEr

Leave a Reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

This site uses Akismet to reduce spam. Learn how your comment data is processed.

To respond on your own website, enter the URL of your response which should contain a link to this post's permalink URL. Your response will then appear (possibly after moderation) on this page. Want to update or remove your response? Update or delete your post and re-enter your post's URL again. (Find out more about Webmentions.)