January 30, 2013 -- Sunny Isles, Fla. – How many geospatial professionals does it take to build a bicycle? That question was answered thirteen different ways today at the Trump International Resort in Sunny Isles, FL as members of a national trade association participated in a charity bike build. Although more than 120 people competed in teams, the real winner was Boys & Girls Clubs of Miami-Dade where the bicycles were donated.

The participants were in Miami to attend the annual winter conference of MAPPS (www.mapps.org), the national association of private sector geospatial firms. They are the owners, principals and senior level executives of companies in the remote sensing, spatial data, and geographic information systems (GIS) field. In other words, these companies are involved in gathering billions of pieces of information and creating all types of maps. But today, they were focused on putting a frame on two wheels and making it work!

"As a trade association, MAPPS has been an advocate for professionalism in the geospatial market. This networking activity to benefit the local community exemplifies the spirit of the organization and its mission. As business owners, MAPPS members are not just interested in profit, but professionalism as well. It was gratifying to make this contribution to young boys and girls who need and deserve a helping hand,” said Dick McDonald, MAPPS President (T3 Global Strategies, Bridgeville, PA).

Microsoft Corporation (Boulder, CO), who provided participants with t-shirts, sponsored the overall event. The sponsors of each of the teams included Microsoft; Aerial Services, Inc. (Cedar Falls, IA); Merrick & Company (Aurora, CO); Michael Baker Jr., Inc. (Harrisburg, PA); Trimble Navigation Limited (Sunnyvale, CA); Wilson & Company, Inc., Engineers & Architects (Salina, KS); Woolpert, Inc. (Dayton, OH) and Visual Intelligence (Houston, TX).

"We’re very thankful to MAPPS for choosing Boys & Girls Clubs of Miami-Dade to receive bikes from this event,” said Alex Rodriguez-Roig, executive director of Boys & Girls Clubs of Miami-Dade. "With the efforts of MAPPS members, we continue to make a difference in the lives of many area youth.”

The completed bicycles were presented to children from Boys and Girls Clubs’ Northwest Club at a ceremony at the conclusion of the event. The bike build took place in conjunction with the associations’ annual winter conference, which included attendees from 29 states, Switzerland and Canada on January 27-31.

About Boys & Girls Clubs of Miami-Dade

Boys & Girls Clubs of Miami-Dade has been serving youth in the community since 1940. What once was a single building and site for boys has grown to five Clubs serving 10,000 boys and girls year round, providing programs in the areas of character and leadership development, educational enhancement, career preparation, health and life skills, cultural arts and sports, fitness and recreation. Club staffing, initiatives, and programs are designed to inspire and enable young people and provide them with the resources to succeed and share in the American Dream. For more information, please visit  www.bgcmia.org.

About MAPPS

Formed in 1982, MAPPS is the only national association exclusively comprised of private firms in the remote sensing, spatial data and geographic information systems field in the United States. The MAPPS membership spans the entire spectrum of the geospatial community, including Member Firms engaged in satellite and airborne remote sensing, surveying, photogrammetry, aerial photography, LIDAR, hydrography, bathymetry, charting, aerial and satellite image processing, GPS, and GIS data collection and conversion services. MAPPS also includes Associate Member Firms, which are companies that provide hardware, software, products and services to the geospatial profession in the United States and other firms from around the world. Independent Consultant Members are sole proprietors engaged in consulting in or to the geospatial profession, or provides a consulting service of interest to the geospatial profession.

MAPPS provides its 160+ member firms opportunities for networking and developing business-to-business relationships, information sharing, education, public policy advocacy, market growth, and professional development and image enhancement.

For more information on MAPPS, please visit www.mapps.org.