From a Middle School Classroom to a Community Movement
How a substitute teacher, a Bambu Lab A1 Mini, and a middle schooler’s big idea grew into a multi-machine 501(c)(3) fabrication lab putting focus tools into teachers’ hands.
The Substitute Teacher & The A1 Mini
Anyone who has worked in middle school education knows it can be a challenging, high-energy endeavor. Our founder, Jerry D. Fife, M.Ed., was working as a substitute teacher at a local middle school, navigating the daily realities of classroom distraction and student focus needs.
At home, Jerry had recently purchased the family’s very first 3D printer — a Bambu Lab A1 Mini with AMS — and had been experimenting with making multi-color articulated fidgets and focus toys for his two sons, Jackson and Alex. Seeing how much the tactile tools helped his own kids, the boys made a simple suggestion: “Dad, why don’t you take some of those fidgets to school with you?”
The Hallway Discovery: Teachers Paying Out-of-Pocket
Jerry took a handful of precision-printed focus fidgets into the classroom the next day. The results were instantaneous: they worked wonders. Fidgety hands calmed, anxious students engaged, and classroom management transformed.
“As I started talking with full-time teachers in the hallway, I realized almost every single one of them relied on sensory focus tools — but they had to buy them completely out of their own personal pockets.”
Teachers already dedicate their lives to education; they shouldn’t have to pay out of pocket just to provide basic sensory focus tools for their students.
“Dad, Why Don’t We Start a Non-Profit?”
When Jerry came home and shared what was happening, his oldest son, Jackson, had an immediate solution: “Why don’t we just print a whole bunch of them and give them away to the middle school?”
Jerry asked the practical question: “Who is going to pay for all that filament?”
“Dad, you already run a non-profit with ProTect Athletics. Why don’t we start another non-profit, sell our 3D prints at markets, and use 100% of the money to donate fidgets to the schools around us?”
That moment founded Fife’s Fun with Filament. Jerry filed the incorporation and 501(c)(3) paperwork, and the Fife Boys went to work.
Community-Powered & Scaled to a 5-Machine Fleet
What started on a kitchen counter has expanded into a full production lab featuring 1x Bambu Lab A1 Mini (with AMS), 3x Bambu Lab A1 printers, and 1x A2L production unit, utilizing premium Bambu Lab (PLA, Silk, PETG, TPU) and Comgrow multi-color filaments.
Powhatan Little League Opening Day & Local Sports
We love supporting our local athletic community! For Powhatan Little League Opening Day, we designed and printed custom 3D baseball LOVE signs, commemorative home run ball stands (crossed bats on a home plate base), and spherical baseball & softball infinity cubes.
Student Leadership & Future Tech
Jackson’s entrepreneurial leadership, technical initiative, and non-profit vision helped earn him acceptance into a competitive regional Governor’s School program, where he is advancing his studies in computer science, coding, and software development.
The Fife’s Fun with Filament Promise
How your support turns directly into classroom success.
100% Non-Profit
Every cent raised through donations, store sales, and custom print jobs funds educational materials.
Zero Fee Donations
Processed through Zeffy with 0% platform deductions so every single dollar reaches classrooms.
5-Machine Precision Lab
High-speed multi-color 3D printers producing durable, silent, and student-safe focus tools.