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WELCOME

Who Am I and What Do I Like To Do?

Hello!

My name is Ryan Prendergast. I am a local high school student who goes to Mass Academy at WPI in Worcester, MA. I am currently 17 years old and live in Holden, MA. Before Mass Academy, I went to Monty Tech in Fitchburg, MA. At Monty Tech, I was in the Engineering shop where I spent every other week studying many different types of engineering. I have a dog named Polly and a brother named Matthew. Scroll to learn more about me!

Companies

RP Landscaping

RP Landscaping is my landscaping business. I started it in 2024 and have been growing it ever since. I enjoy landscaping because it allows me to disconnect from a world filled with screens and spend more time outside. We operate throughout Sterling, Holden, Princeton, Rutland, and Worcester for traditional services and will also go to other neighboring towns for bigger jobs. We offer a wide range of services, helping homeowners wherever needed.

If you are interested in any landscaping services or are looking for more information about services, deals, how to contact, or employment opportunities, view my site HERE.

Throw and Go Accessories

Throw and Go Accessories is my plastics manufacturing company. We design disc golf accessories and sell them to Marshall Street Disc Golf. We design using computer-aided design (CAD) and manufacture using 3D printers. Each accessory goes through rigorous testing to ensure it will stay durable in all temperatures. New products are in the works and set to be released in the next few months. If you want the products we sell, click on the link below.

Products I sell:

  1. Retriever Pole Clip

  2. Cart Attachment for Retriever Pole

  3. Adjustable Disc Hangers

  4. Disc Hangers

Volunteering

What Volunteering Have I Done?

  1. Boy Scouts - I am currently the Junior Assistant Scout Master of Troop 180 Holden. The photo shows 3 of the 4 picnic tables that I built as part of my Eagle Scout project. I made, stained, and placed all 4 tables for Hillside Disc Golf Course in Boylston, MA. Additionally, I cleared areas around the tee pads and pathways to make the course an overall better experience for players.

  2. Middle School Robotics Club Mentor at Mountview Middle School - I volunteer my time at my former middle school, assisting students in designing robots using VEX.

  3. First Lego League (FLL) - I serve as a mentor for a First Lego League team. I am new, and will add more details later. The picture shown depicts this year's challenges.

  4. Vocational Interest Program (VIP) at Monty Tech - In the past, I volunteered at Monty Tech's VIP program. Middle schoolers would come to Monty Tech in the evening to learn new skills and see if the school is right for them. I would lead classes in engineering where we would explore basic electronics in circuits and work on design challenges, such as building a small boat to support pennies.

What Do I Like About Volunteering?

  1. Volunteering allows me to show my appreciation for all the opportunities I get in life. I get a chance to give back to my communities that helped me be the person I am today.

  2. When volunteering, I get to help people learn new skills and make a direct impact on the environment to make the world a better place.

  3. I get to share my passion for engineering with students by guiding them to tackle problems, step by step.

Extracurriculars

First Robotics Competition Team 190

I am a member of First Robotics Competition (FRC) 190. I am on the manufacturing team, specializing in computer-aided design (CAD) and machining. I enjoy robotics because it allows me to apply my hypothetical knowledge of CAD, machining, and programming to a robot. Building a fully-function robot from nothing but parts is something that has interested me since I was a kid, and I am proud to be part of FRC 190 to put my skills to use. A major part of robotics is prototyping to find out what design works best. You can see the photo where my team and I tested our intake mechanism.

Skills USA

Skills USA is a competition for trade schools, similar to DECA. Students compete in over a hundred different competitions spanning many different trades. I competed in the Engineering Technology Design competition where a team and I designed a solution to make it possible to diagnose circuit part failure in order to assist students in learning about electrical engineering. My team placed sixth at the state competition.

Football

At Monty Tech, I played Football for 2 years on their Freshmen, JV, and Varsity teams. I played linebacker and widest receiver. Unfortunately, switching schools to Mass Academy forced me to stop playing football. However, I still enjoy playing the sport in a more casual setting with friends. I enjoy the sport because of its hard work and dedication that it requires. I also like teamwork, where each person has to work towards a group goal in order to defeat opponents.

Track & Field

In the spring, I was a track athlete. I ran the 110 meter hurdles, threw javelin, and did long jump. While I am also no longer a part of the team, I enjoyed the events where I was able to compare myself to previous times, seeing an improvement as I worked harder at practices.

CAD Club

Computer-aided design (CAD) club at Mass Academy expanded on my prior knowledge of CAD, challenging me to design a marble track that could run for the longest time possible without stopping. With the implementation of a motor, I was able to make the marble run work for a near infinite amount of time, so long as the motor did not lose power. You can see my final design both in CAD and a picture of it after it was 3D printed.

Computing Club

In the Computing Club at Mass Academy, we learn how to design and program our own PCB boards. We start with breadboards, wires, and basic circuit components and progress our skills to where we design custom PCB boards and then solder on any remaining components we need. You can see my final design, where I built a mini version of the game “Simon” which involves memorizing a list of colors and pressing the correct buttons.

Math Team

A was a member of the math team at Monty Tech, where I competed in a variety of both team and individual math competitions. I enjoyed the mix between my love of mathematics and a competition setting.

Physics

Physics club was a great way to expand on one of my favorite subjects. Similar to a math team, the physics club helped prepare me for the F=MA Competition. The competition I competed in is an International Physics Olympiad for high schoolers around the world.

Robotics Club

Prior to my current FRC team, I was a member of the Monty Tech robotics club where we designed and built robots to compete at competitions. I worked to build robots that would accomplish tasks such as throwing balls through hoops to earn points or stacking blocks on top of each other.

Debate Club

Through the Monty Tech debate club, I learned how to express myself through a structured and civil argument. The debate club put students outside of their comfort zones by sometimes having debates where students were assigned to a side, rather than getting to pick it for themselves.

Chess Club

The chess club at Monty Tech was a great way to express my passion for the game while also having a place to go to compete with friends in an academic setting.

Internships

Massachusetts Firefighting Academy

Collaboration has shaped my ability to lead, problem-solve, and adapt in professional settings. In the summer of 2024, I was a virtual intern for the Massachusetts Department of Fire Services (DFS) through WBLA. I led a team of four other high schoolers to develop a branch of the DFS mass.gov page that engages kids and teens in firefighting. Throughout the process of creating the website, we met with professionals from DFS who served as mentors, giving our team insights into day-to-day firefighting. Everyone was assigned a role, such as head of research, UX design, conducting pilot tests with different sample groups, and organizing events while communicating with mentors. As the team leader, I ensured that research, UX design, pilot testing, and communication were effectively coordinated, keeping the project on track. We collaborated virtually on daily deliverables each morning using the engineering design process to improve our work.

3D Printing

What I Use

  1. Fusion360 - I use Fusion360 when designing in CAD. Back in middle school, I would use TinkerCAD to design simple parts. After an introduction to Fusion360 and 3D printing at Monty Tech, I switched over and learned Fusion360.

  2. Ender 3 V2 - My Ender 3 V2 was my first ever printer. When my brother and I got it as a gift, I used it to print a variety of different items (some of which are under "What I've Made"). After about a year of having my printer, I started Throw and Go Accessories to make real products that solve real problems.

Picture of Ryan's Ender 3 v2

  1. Bambu Labs P1S - I bought my Bambu Labs printer at the start of 2025. Its fast print speed and high quality quickly made it my favorite printer. I bought the more advanced P1S to allow myself to print materials such as Acrylonitrile Butadiene Styrene (ABS) (much stronger), Polyethylene Terephthalate Glycol (PET-G) (more weather resistant), and Thermoplastic Polyurethane (TPU) (flexible). The new printer also allowed me to better production quality and speed for Throw and Go Accessories.

Picture of Ryan's Bambu P1S

What I've Made

  1. Disc Golf Products - These products can be seen with the Marshall Street Disc Golf links in the Throw and Go Accessories section.

  2. Gifts for friends and family - below you can see a funnel I designed and 3D printed to help one of my family members more efficiently pour chalk into bags that she was sewing.

Picture of Funnel designed in CAD

  1. Useful prints that make me more organized - the picture below shows some of the 3D printed accessories I have printed for my Ikea Skadis. I designed some and found some others online.

Picture of 3D printed attachments on pegboard