Stryke Force

Mentors

  • Jerry Culp

    Team Leader

    Jerry has been mentoring for 11 years. He graduated from Purdue University with a degree in electrical engineering. He retired from Stryker one year ago following a career there in R&D leadership. Jerry started mentoring because "someone has to help the next generation get good at STEM."

  • Sam Dare

    Build

    Sam has been mentoring since he completed high school and has been mentoring Stryke Force for 5 years. He graduated from Calvin University with a degree in electrical engineering. Sam participated with a FRC and is a huge believer in the program. "We are building the future." He said. He now works at Stryker as an electrical engineer.

  • Bailey Flint

    Build

    Bailey started mentoring in the offseason of 2022. She graduated from Case Western Reserve with a biomedical engineering degree. Bailey participated with FIRST in high school and enjoyed the community and mentors and wanted to help out. She is now a mechanical design engineer at Stryker.

  • Paul Hoekstra

    Programming

    Paul started mentoring in 2023.  He graduated from GVSU with a degree in electrical engineering and has since become a Chief Engineer at Stryker.  Paul watched closely when one of his children joined the team and decided to join as a mentor after seeing all the great interactions.  He enjoys working with the other mentors to pass STEM on to the next generation.

  • Jeff Hutchison

    Programming

    Jeff has been mentoring FRC since 2016. He attended the University of Colorado-Boulder as a Naval ROTC midshipman. He received a degree in Electrical Engineering and Computer science and a commission as an Ensign in the Navy. He was subsequently trained in the Navy’s nuclear power program and served as a submarine officer. He wanted to help get students excited about college and challenging themselves in a STEM field, he also enjoys rolling up his sleeves and diving into creating a robot with students. He worked at Stryker in various engineering. IT, and leadership roles.

  • Wendy Hutchison

    Business

    Wendy has been mentoring the Stryke Force business team since 2017. She earned her graduate degree in manufacturing engineering from WMU. After retiring from Fabri-Kal Corp., Wendy became a full time volunteer with Meals On Wheels, Girls On the Run, and Special Olympics. Wendy wanted to be a part of Stryke Force to help with recruiting and fundraising and to help students prepare for their future.

  • Sarina McDougal

    Business

    Sarina has been mentoring since 2019. She went to Grand Valley State University and graduated from Cornerstone University with a bachelor's degree in business. Her two kids were on the middle school team and there was a need for new coaches; she wanted to support them and she started helping out. She now helps with the Business team for FRC. She is the Lead master data specialist, managing master data at Stryker.

  • Phil Michaelson

    Build

  • Doug Staunton

    Build

    Doug has been mentoring the Stryke Force teams since 2011. He went to the United States Naval Academy for mechanical engineering and was a Naval Officer before becoming a Chief Engineer at Stryker. Doug became a mentor to help the other mentors as our team grew, and when his children joined the program he decided to stay a mentor and become a permanent part of the team.

  • Cory Walter

    Drive Coach

    Cory Walter has been mentoring since 2013. He graduated from Western Michigan University with a leadership and management degree. Cory was on a FIRST team as a student and has been with FIRST for 20 years. He is now a talent specialist for Stryker.

  • Mark Wasserman

    Build

    Mark Wasserman has been mentoring since 2012. Following his service in the military, Mark began a career at Stryker as an electrical engineer and is now retired. He became a mentor to help the students and his fellow mentors. "I know things and like to build stuff." he said.

  • Marisa Witcpalek

    Programming

    Marisa has been mentoring since 2017. She graduated from the University of Michigan with an electrical engineering degree. Marisa was on a robotics team as a high school student and that is what helped her pick her major. She wanted to help students as her mentors helped her, so she started mentoring. She is now an electrical engineer at Stryker.