Mar 16, 20233 min read

Indianapolis Team Spotlight | Meet The Mavericks

For a second year in a row, Make48 held a 48 hour competition in Indianapolis. Six teams came together at Fishers Makers Playground for the Corteva Agriscience & United Way of Central Indiana challenge. One team walked away with the trophy and that was team Mavericks! Jason, Kelly, Tyler and Grant will meet the others at Nationals later this month in Kansas City.

The theme for the challenge was Food Preservation: Food At The Right Place-At The Right Time. The prototype challenge for the teams was to create a suitable "Food Locker'' that can house pre-cooked meals that the community members (consumers) can access, placed in locations around the city. (Think community little free library, but for food/prepared meal distribution). Teams had a number of items to think about when creating their prototype. It had to be moveable, work in extreme weather, consider how consumers register to use the food locker, and think about safety issues and the consumer experience. Those were just a handful of requirements that Corteva Agriscience called. With the help of the tool techs and mentors, every team finished their prototype, sales sheet and promotional video in 2 days.

Jason Tuntland, Kelly Tuntland, Tyler Tuntland and Grant Venable are a close crew who have a passion for technology and aviation. Married couple Jason and Kelly worked with their son Tyler and Grant, Tyler’s friend. They brainstormed an idea and built the Eat & Grow Meal Pantry. The Meal Pantry offers fresh, ready-to-heat meals, supplied by restaurants in an effort to reduce supply waste and help the local community. The Mavericks also took into account recycling and sustainability, a multifaceted issue in food distribution. With a very strong pitch to the judges, the Mavericks won the big prize and will have a chance to win $10,000 at Nationals.

The fourth 2022 Make48 event was held at Fishers community makerspace inside the Hub & Spoke Building in Fishers, Indiana. Aylin Bartlett (V.P., Crop Protection Supply Chain at Corteva Agriscience), George Ellis (Global Leader, Logistics Procurement and International Trade Governance, Corteva Agriscience), John Elliott (President & CEO Gleaners Food Bank), and Fred Payne (President & CEO United Way of Central Indiana), were judges and were tasked to choose the best idea and the team who will represent Indianapolis. We’re looking forward to seeing the Mavericks this month! Get to know more about Jason, Kelly, Tyler and Grant.

What’s a fun fact about your team?

Kelly is an amazing singer of a local band!

Tyler, when he was younger, was spotlighted on the local news as an up-and-coming potential Olympic Curler.

Grant is an Aerospace Engineering student at Purdue and has lots of hands-on flight experience.

Jason is truly a jack of all trades. He worked as a heavy duty diesel mechanic for many years, builds flight training simulators out of retired aircraft on the side, used to repair and restore classic cars and hot rods at a local Resto-Mod shop, and enjoys anything aviation.

What’s the Biggest Strength on your team?

Outside the box thinking. Our team members each have their own backgrounds and opinions. Together we are stronger.

What do you think you’d do differently, if anything, at Nationals?

We’ll better utilize the tool techs and their strengths.

What is a Crazy or Heartwarming Story?

In 2021, during the height of covid, Kelly had a very large brain tumor removed. Her outlook was unknown and carried lifelong risks. She is a fighter, and pulled through.

We are thankful and have a new lease on life! We take every opportunity to make memories as a family. Make48 is now one of the great ones!

At Nationals, what’s one thing you want to do, or see, at the Kansas City Competition?

We are excited to reunite with several members of the Make48 crew and support staff. Including Gregg Nowling, Tyler Isaacs, and many more. One member of our team has plans to get a Make48 paper airplane tattoo to commemorate the events.

For the first time, teams have a chance this year to win the Spirit Stick Award. The winners will receive a KC gift bundle and CEO, Tom Gray will take the team out to dinner (in their city). Where do you think the team will choose?

We have some great local restaurants that we would love to spotlight, like 10 West of Cicero Indiana.

And our last question… Favorite snack at the M48 Event?

Darrell Lea (TOM KNOWS)!