MEMBER SPOTLIGHT: ROBBIE SAPUNARICH

Could you tell us who you are and what it is that you do?

I'm Robbie Sapunarich. I’m a husband and father who's called Charlottesville home for the last three and a half years after moving here from Southern California. I work as a software developer for my day job, currently with Lone Wolf Technologies. I also write about faith and culture, do volunteer ministry work, and lead a DIY liberal arts education book club called The Gap Year.

What do you love most about the work?

I'm a curious person and enjoy learning about new things. Working with software, words, and people gives me ample opportunity to do all of that.

 How did you arrive at this point in your career? What’s your backstory?

I was an English major in college. After graduating, I considered pursuing a career in academia (I even looked at some UVA's grad programs), but was discouraged by the diminishing employment prospects. I did a programming bootcamp when I learned that I could have a thriving career in software without a CS degree. My first job was with a real estate tech company called W+R Studios (which would later be acquired by Lone Wolf Technologies). After moving to Charlottesville, I had the chance to work for a couple of local startups, Everactive and Lumin. Those were exciting opportunities, and I got to work on really interesting problems with some great people. Last year, I followed my mentor from W+R Studios to another real estate startup, but my team and I were laid off in November 2022. Thankfully, we both landed on our feet at Lone Wolf, and I'm getting to revisit code I wrote a few years ago.

Has there been a light switch moment, a turning point, professionally &/or personally along the way?

I've experienced a few of those the last few years. The first was the birth of my daughter, Etta, this past year. Watching her grow is truly magical and hard to put into words. Secondly, I've become more deliberate about developing secondary vocations around writing and ministry. Finally, the collective turmoil we've all experienced over the last few years put a lot of priorities in stark relief to me. I'm trying to better love and appreciate the people I encounter every day, both my family and my village.

What are you currently working on, excited about, looking forward to?

 For work, we're almost done with migrating all of our applications from a data center to AWS. I am very excited about finishing that. Our book club is about to start reading St. Augustine's Confessions, translated by Sarah Ruden. I also have a few personal essays in the works that'll be published online. Those interested can find links to my writing here.

What values drive your work each day?

Empathy and integrity. Trying to do what's best for the people around me.

Anything we missed that you might care to share (closing thoughts)?

My workout group (F3 Cville) helps to put on the Haven 8K, and we need volunteers to help direct and cheer on the runners! You can sign up here if interested.