ROANOKE (WSLS 10) - Technology experts are coming together to help local non-profit organizations come up with solutions to their technical needs.
LEAP for Local Food has a lot going on, especially with the summer launch of its mobile market.
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"One thing we're trying to do is connect with our customers," said LEAP's Sam Lev.
But with just three employees, putting together a mobile app to let customers know where they are and when, as well as what food they have to offer on a given day, is a challenge.
"We don't exactly have the technical prowess to build something like that or the funding to do it."
Enter Noke Codes' civic hackathon.
"We're talking about building things as opposed to tearing them down," explained Brad Stephens. "Essentially building computer infrastructure over a marathon 24 hours."
The technology project taking place at the Grandin CoLab Friday and Saturday aims to bring coders and developers together to put the expertise to work for local non-profits. By day, non-profits sit in on seminars, learning how to use social media, web development and email marketing.
Friday night, developers will get to work on tools to help make the jobs of non-profits easier.
"It's a fun networking opportunity for them but they get to do something fun and interesting and it benefits their community," Stephens said.
Noke Codes reached out to "just about every organization in the road in Blacksburg area that has technical experts on staff" for help. An opportunity to help non-profits increase their impact on the community.
"It's going to be really great," Lev said. "It's going to be great for the customers. It's going to be great for us to be able to connect with people and really improve the service that we provide."
The hackathon will end Saturday at 5:00 p.m. with a party. The community is invited to attend.