With a heavy heart, I pass along the sad news that Francois Castaing, who brought FIRST to Michigan, passed away on July 27 at the age of 78.

Francois loved FIRST. When Dean Kamen introduced Francois to FIRST in the early 1990s, he gathered the automotive industry together and urged them to support it. They all did. And thanks to Francois, they still do.

Francois loved to innovate: cars, companies, anything he could make better through his hard work, strategic clarity, ingenuity and determination. FIRST was no exception. In 2008, he helped us champion a new competition model for the high school FIRST Robotics Competition. We formed our own local 501c3 organization, FIRST in Michigan, with Francois as Chairman. He remained in that role until 2019.

His generous spirit and passion for nurturing the next generation of innovators made him the perfect Chairman.  Under his leadership, FIRST in Michigan saw unprecedented growth of teams at all levels, a realignment of programs, and the birth of the FIRST Community build site. But what made him most proud, was the army of volunteers who give of themselves to bring our initiatives to life and make FIRST programs available to our youth.

With every new milestone, we will be reminded of the cherished leader who started it all in Michigan.