Patterson Man Wins Job at New LEGOLAND
Job interviews are like contests, but for one Patterson man he can really say he got his job by winning a LEGO building contest.
Concluding two days of intense competition at what was one of the metropolitan area’s more unusual job interviews, Michael Tocidlowski, a 22-year-old Patterson resident, was named the winner of the “Brick Factor” Master Model Builder Competition for Ridge Hill in Yonkers.
Beating out 19 competitors, Tocidlowski survived two-preliminary rounds and the semi-finals to win his dream job, a full-time salaried position as LEGOLAND Discovery Center Westchester’s Master Model Builder. Rounding out the top three in the competition were Shay Omran of Mount Vernon and Linda Tedesco of Lagrangeville.
“I can’t believe it, this is a dream come true for me,” said Tocidlowski. “There were a lot of great competitors here this weekend and it is an honor to be chosen.”
In fact he confided that he did not even enter it thinking about seriously winning. “My dad told me about the competition and I honestly never expected to win,” he said. “I was just doing it to have fun and ended up getting a job, so it was much better than I expected.”
This one-of-a-kind audition sought to find the most skilled and creative model builder, and in his new position, Tocidlowski will be responsible for developing new features and exhibitions, building new models, as well as working with thousands of children and families expected to visit the attraction.
LEGOLAND Discovery Center Westchester is a 32,300 square-foot indoor attraction featuring more than 3 million LEGO bricks, geared towards children ages 3-10 and their families. Its range of interactive attractions will include hands-on play areas, a 4D cinema, two LEGO rides, special party rooms and MINILAND — the venue’s signature re-creation of landmark locations and buildings throughout Westchester County and New York City, made entirely out of LEGO bricks. Additionally there will be master classes led by Tocidlowski and other Master Model Builders.
During “Brick Factor,” candidates were faced with millions of LEGO bricks and demonstrated their skills at creating LEGO models in a series of time-limited, creative LEGO challenges. A panel of judges, including Merlin Entertainments Head of New Openings, James Paulding; LEGOLAND Discovery Center Westchester General Manager, Chris Mines; LEGOLAND Discovery Center Kansas City Master Model Builder, Jeremiah Boehr; and Junior Judge, Fox Perelson from Putnam Valley evaluated each candidate’s performance over the course of the competition.
Throughout the first day of auditions, participants were put to task in two 30-minute preliminary rounds and a 45-minute semi-final, challenged to build LEGO creations in the following respective categories: Mode of Transportation, Local Attraction or Landmark, and Mystical Creature.
At the conclusion of Saturday’s events, 11 applicants advanced and competed in Sunday’s final round, where they each had one hour to build a LEGO model that is reflective of themselves. The final models were reviewed by the judges, who declared as LEGOLAND Discovery Center Westchester’s Master Model Builder. Tocidlowski’s final round creation was a motorcycle, inspired by his joy of riding.
“We were amazed by the level of competition that was on display here at Brick Factor this weekend and thank everyone who participated for making it an incredible event,” said Chris Mines. “The talented pool of finalists made it a very difficult decision, but we felt Michael has the perfect balance of LEGO building skill and personality to represent LEGOLAND Discovery Center Westchester.”
Tocidlowski credits the fun he had as a child playing with LEGOs alongside his brother Shawn as his formal LEGO building training.
“I cannot wait to work with kids and help them with their creations,” he said. “I love kids and I love LEGOs so I cannot go wrong.
Adam has worked in the local news industry for the past two decades in Westchester County and the broader Hudson Valley. Read more from Adam’s author bio here.
