A+ Team wins Chicago's first Nerdery Overnight Website Challenge

After 24 hours and several pounds of Peace Coffee, the winner of The Nerdery Overnight Website Challenge - the first-ever in Chicago - is A+ Team for its nerdy deeds done pro bono for Southwest Chicago Pads.

"This weekend, well over two thousand hours of professional web development services will be given freely to 10 nonprofit organizations," said Mike Derheim, CEO of The Nerdery before the 24-hour countdown began. "Whether you're on the giving end or the receiving end of this bargain, thanks for playing your part in our first-ever Nerdery Overnight Website Challenge in Chicago."

Down two ill-stricken nerds just before Challenge weekend, A+ Team captain Chris Wilkinson pinged The Nerdery to assist in finding qualified replacements. Jason Crocker, who'd asked to fly stand-by should such an opportunity knock, promptly drove in from Cleveland to contribute to the winning effort.

Rounding out the Final Four of development teams and their respective nonprofits:

• Cloudbot (and Friends), serving Midwest Young Artists
• Drop Shadows Not Bombs, serving Crossroads Adoption Services
• Drupal Rocks, serving A Safe Haven Foundation

Honorably mentioned runners-up/co-winners:

• Awesome Dolphins and Friends, serving Near Northwest Arts Council
• Chamois Butter for Lunch, serving Peace Care
• Chicago on Rails, serving Kids Have Hope
• Greater Pixel Consortium, serving Institution Del Progresso Latino
• Nerdery Bigfoot Research Consortium, serving Hemophilia Foundation of Illinois
• Team 13, serving Northwestern Settlement

Comprised of leaders from Chicago's nonprofit and interactive communities, this independent panel of judges performed the double-duty of assessing applications of eligible nonprofits and judging the work of development teams during the last few hours of the 24-hour all-nighter:

• Melanie Adcock, tech blogger
• Joshua Brown, program manager, Taproot Foundation
• Randy Dill, founder and CEO, Chicago Non-Profit
• Cynthia Putnam, professor, College of Computing & Digital Media at DePaul University

Event Sponsors: DePaul University - College of Computing and Digital Media; The Nerdery; Resolution Digital Studios;

In-kind supporters: Chipotle; Dominos; Ergotron; Groupon; Peace Coffee; ThinkGeek; XS Energy Drink.