A growing relationship between farming and technology has piqued one father's interest so much that he's supporting a local robotics club and challenging others to do the same.
John Nooyen, a partner of Nooyen Farms, recently donated $1,000 to the CK Cyber Pack, a club his son is a member of.
John Jr., who's now in Grade 12, first joined the robotics club in Grade 11. He said being apart of the club has "definitely" affirmed his plans to go to university for computer engineering.
"It has been very fun. There are many different people with differing opinions and different skill sets -- sort of like what I expect an actual job field to be like," said John Jr.
After seeing his son compete at a FIRST robotics competition, Nooyen said he was amazed at how the students worked together with what they had in terms of funding.
"When they all came together they had one common goal to work cooperatively together and I thought that was great just to see them work together as a team," he said.
Nooyen also noticed the link between what the students were doing and the evolving agriculture industry. He said upgrades are constantly being made to farm machinery and saw an opportunity to support his son's ambitions in the technology sector in relation to his family's roots.
"Hopefully I can keep my son [involved] in agriculture but by doing what he's doing now [with technology]," said Nooyen.
He said money given to the CK Cyber Pack is to help them out when they compete against other clubs who have more funding. However, he's also hoping it inspires other farmers and ag-companies in the area to support the club by matching his donation.
"These farm equipment dealerships know that they're going to need these kids [one day]... when it comes down to it they're going to have to work together to fix the machines that we operate in these fields now," said Nooyen.
In the meantime, John Jr. said he's enjoying his time with the CK Cyber Pack and added it's a good extra-curricular activity.
"The robotics club is a good opportunity for any student to join because a lot of colleges or universities will offer grants," he said. "It's a way for people to save money on college and university as well as have a fun and educational experience. It's fun to build a robot, robots are awesome."
-With files from Allanah Wills