West Sound CoderDojo
“Where the community learns to code — for free”
Kitsap Regional Library · Silverdale · Est. 2015
No. We’re still here. West Sound Technology Professionals Association (WSTPA) was formed in 2000 to help foster a vibrant local technology sector in the West Puget Sound region. We held hundreds of meetings on tech topics — databases, website and mobile development, communications, social media, marketing, Microsoft tech, Linux, and more. Since our audience was always a mix of tech, business, education, government, and nonprofit communities, we changed our name in 2008 to simply West Sound Technology Association.
Recognizing the fundamental need for STEAM talent, CoderDojo was identified in 2015 by our strategic advisor, former president, and co-founding member Doña Keating as an initiative that could make the greatest and quickest impact — hopefully reaching all kids ages 7–18 to spark their interest in computer programming, problem-solving, computational thinking, leadership, and collaborative peer-to-peer learning. She founded West Sound CoderDojo in March 2015, and WSTA became fiscal and collaborating partner. We held our first CoderDojo that May. Our events are now all ages.
Several WSTA board members announced their desire to retire at the end of 2016, and we saw this as an opportunity to re-evaluate our mission and focus. The unanimous decision was to act as a foundation as of 2017, and continue to support technology and education via WSCD and other efforts. We are also encouraging other organizations to promote the tech sector through their mission activities.
No. Memberships helped fund WSTPA/WSTA operations, and while we still need financial support to sustain operations, this is now funded by sponsorships and donations.
Yes! We welcome both corporate and individual donations and sponsorships. Donations of $200 and above will receive special recognition, and are promoted on this site, in email communications, and across our social media channels. View our current supporters →
Possibly. We used to host West Sound Techies, Kitsap Women in Tech, and Island Coders meetups but discontinued these. When COVID hit in March 2020, we shifted WSCD to Zoom and paused in-person events. Our partnerships with like-minded entities on virtual events have steadily increased. We’ve started to discuss hosting virtual business/tech meetings of our own.
We agree that tech is not just about programming. We also work with AI and DIY projects. If something is of interest to you, ping us and we’ll talk about it.
Charles Keating serves as President and Treasurer, Tim Duffey as Vice-President, Erin Leigh Howard as Secretary, and Merrill Keating is At-Large. We are always seeking more people to help with the mission of WSTA — if you’re interested, reach out.
Donations are welcome via PayPal below, or mail checks to: West Sound Technology Association, P.O. Box 1102, Silverdale WA 98383. To volunteer, see our Volunteer page or contact us directly.
Support WSTA and West Sound CoderDojo with a donation. We are a 501(c)3 nonprofit.
Donate via PayPal →Or mail checks to:
West Sound Technology Association
P.O. Box 1102, Silverdale WA 98383
★ Bill Huckabee passed unexpectedly in August 2023. He is honored by our STEM Scholarship in his name.