One Spark opening night draws crowds

Thousands expected at One Spark

JACKSONVILLE, Fla. – The second annual One Spark Festival was in full swing Wednesday night in downtown Jacksonville.

Thousands filled the streets to see more than 600 inventors and entrepreneurs who are competing to win hundreds of thousands of dollars in prize money. Everything from live music to robots were on display for the crowds.

Among the creators Wednesday night was musician Jordan Poole of Music Nat. Poole is trying to raise money to fuel a project of providing funds to help families in another country.

"To raise money for families in need in Guatemala that need houses and need $3,500 to do so," said Poole. "I'm taking proceeds from the album to do that and I'm using One Spark to do that," said Poole. "Anything I can get in One Spark, I want to win, definitely. That's why I came out here."

Robotics engineer Marin Day is also hoping her idea is a success during One Spark this year. Day is part of a group that's been building robots at Stanton College Prep.

"We build all of these robots in a little backyard shop all from scratch," said Day. "This is the latest robot from 2014, and what it does is pick up a large ball about 20 inches in diameter and feeds it. It will fire into a goal, the size of a basketball goal."

One Spark attendees can vote on their favorite inventions, as well as see pitches from inventors as they compete for a cash reward in various categories.

RELATED: One Spark 101: What you need to know

One Spark continues through Sunday, April 13. It's based in Hemming Plaza in downtown Jacksonville.

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Wednesday began as a relatively normal day, with people gathering in Hemming Plaza.


About the Authors:

Scott is a multi-Emmy Award Winning Anchor and Reporter, who also hosts the “Going Ringside With The Local Station” Podcast. Scott has been a journalist for 25 years, covering stories including six presidential elections, multiple space shuttle launches and dozens of high-profile murder trials.