Renaissance – a time of great technological advancements and a rebirth of creative and artistic endeavors

LUG – an acronym for LEGO® User Group

RenLUG is the public-facing name of Renaissance LEGO® User Group Inc, a 501(c)(3) nonprofit LEGO® fan community based in Central Florida.

Our goal is to celebrate and promote LEGO® art and innovation among adult builders while pushing boundaries through problem-solving, learning, and forward-thinking. This approach ensures that the RenLUG community remains dynamic and continuously evolves, embracing new ideas and challenges.

Our Mission and Vision

RenLUG is dedicated to fostering a supportive environment where Adult Fans of LEGO® (AFOLs) can come together to share their passion for LEGO®, inspire one another, and contribute positively to their communities through creativity, imagination, and cooperation — including LEGO® displays at conventions and in our community, and by hosting events, workshops and other programs for the public.

This includes volunteering and hosting local STEM events with other STEM organizations or volunteering to support existing events as well as presenting and displaying at local Science Centers, Libraries, Maker Faires, Robotics Events and other large conventions to engage and inspire people of all ages, including today’s youth. We strive to inspire each other to be not just better builders, but better people.

RenLUG envisions a vibrant Central Florida community where adult LEGO® enthusiasts connect, inspire, and build together — fostering creativity, friendship, and lifelong passion, united by innovation and inclusivity.

Our Story

RenLUG began in early 2019 when a group of friends were building together as a way to relax after a robotics tournament, discussing hobbies that would keep the group connected. That idea evolved into something bigger — an informal monthly LEGO® building meetup open to others who shared the same passion. Our new group needed a name, so we combined two words that captured exactly what we were:

• Renaissance — a time of great technological advancements and a rebirth of creative and artistic endeavors
• LUG — an acronym for LEGO® User Group

Where those founders came from and why STEM is in RenLUG’s DNA:

Several of RenLUG’s founders discovered their love of building and engineering through childhood LEGO® robotics and STEM programs — experiences that shaped not just their skills, but their belief that hands-on LEGO® learning can change a kid’s trajectory. That conviction is baked into RenLUG’s DNA. Today, those same founders and members are giving back — mentoring youth robotics teams, volunteering at STEM events, and bringing their experience full circle to help inspire the next generation of builders, engineers, and innovators.

RenLUG’s founders brought experience from LEGO® robotics, STEM programs, youth robotics teams, and community outreach. That experience shaped RenLUG from the beginning, making hands-on LEGO® education, STEM/STEAM activities, and community outreach foundational to the organization.

RenLUG Through the Years

2019 — RenLUG Begins

RenLUG began as a group of LEGO® fans with roots in STEM competitions, robotics, volunteering, and hands-on educational activities. The group’s founders had already been using LEGO® and robotics to engage children and families through outreach events while involved with youth robotics teams. RenLUG carried that experience forward from the beginning, combining member community, LEGO® building, STEM/STEAM activities, and educational outreach.

From 2019 through 2023, these programs were the primary focus of RenLUG’s community work.

2020 — Continuing Through the Pandemic

When the pandemic disrupted in-person activities, RenLUG adapted rather than stopping. Members continued connecting through virtual meetings, while RenLUG brought its educational programming online with LEGO® and STEM classes for children through Zoom & Ryver.

2021–2023 — Continuing the Mission

As in-person activities returned, RenLUG resumed its regular member meetings and hands-on LEGO® programming while continuing its STEM/STEAM outreach and community activities. Relationships with engineering societies, homeschool communities, libraries, schools, youth organizations, and other community partners continued to support RenLUG’s educational outreach throughout its Central Florida community.

2024 — Becoming a Nonprofit & Expanding Programs

In 2024, marking our fifth anniversary, RenLUG received 501(c)(3) nonprofit status as a professional society committed to advancing LEGO® creativity, education, and community engagement. This milestone formalized the organization behind the commitment to community and programs RenLUG had been building since 2019 and opened the door to broader programs and partnerships.

RenLUG also expanded its LEGO® gravity racing program with a new 3-lane, 35-foot racing track and electronic timing system, made possible through a successful $3,000 fundraising campaign. The expanded track created the foundation for the larger racing program that would later become RenLUG Royal Rally Racing.

RenLUG became the Programming Partner for the LEGO® area at Enchanted Knights Festivals, a recurring series held four times each year. RenLUG has full creative control of the LEGO-focused area, developing and delivering LEGO® programming, activities, displays, and exhibition experiences within these indoor renaissance-themed events.

We are proud to hold Candid’s Platinum Seal of Transparency — the highest rating awarded to nonprofits for financial accountability and organizational openness — every year since incorporation. Learn more →

2025 — Major Expansion in Public Exhibitions

RenLUG continued its STEM/STEAM outreach while expanding its public exhibition work.

Brick Convention Orlando became RenLUG’s first large-scale LEGO® convention, where RenLUG received Best in Show and Best Small Building awards.

RenLUG also exhibited at Brick Fan Event Orlando and Maker Faire Orlando for the first time. At its debut Maker Faire Orlando appearance, RenLUG received a Maker of Merit Award.

Building on a history of supporting Engineering Week and the engineering education work that preceded RenLUG, the organization established the RenLUG E-Week Fund for Engineering & Engineering Education, a named endowment supporting ongoing engineering education and STEM outreach. RenLUG had received an Engineering Week grant in 2024, continuing a tradition of Engineering Week support that had also benefited the youth robotics teams from which RenLUG’s founders came.

2026 — Expanding Public Programming & Exhibitions

RenLUG continued its regular member activities, STEM/STEAM outreach, signature programs, and community partnerships while expanding its public programming and exhibition schedule to additional conventions and large-scale gatherings. RenLUG became the Programming Partner for the LEGO® area at EpicVerse Comic Con, with full creative control of the LEGO-focused area, and expanded that relationship to Battlezone Cards Events, with RenLUG’s first Battlezone-branded event planned for October 2026.

RenLUG also exhibited at Pompano Beach Toy Con and continued its four-times-yearly Enchanted Knights Festival appearances and supported another LEGO® community’s first convention display by contributing builds to the Brick Fan Event Tampa exhibition.

At Brick Convention Orlando 2026, RenLUG received five awards and presented 144 linear feet of LEGO® displays across 44 tables.

Today — A Central Florida LEGO® Community

Today, RenLUG continues building on the foundation established in 2019 to bring together adult LEGO® fans while combining member activities, hands-on building, STEM/STEAM outreach, public programming, exhibitions, and community partnerships. The organization continues to grow its presence throughout Central Florida while building new opportunities to share LEGO® creativity and learning with the broader community.

RenLUG Central Florida LEGO® User Group is where adult LEGO® fans connect through building and creativity while sharing LEGO® with the broader community through STEM/STEAM programs, educational outreach, public exhibitions, and hands-on experiences.

Our Impact

From a small group of friends in 2019 to a growing nonprofit with community presence across Central Florida, RenLUG’s reach has grown every year:

These numbers reflect documented direct engagements at RenLUG-produced events — our most conservative measure. Total community reach including participation at partner-hosted events is estimated to be significantly higher.

Direct engagements are counted at RenLUG-produced events using headcounts, participation logs, and activity records maintained since 2019.

What We Do – Our Programs

Renaissance Lego® User Group Inc delivers community impact through five programs:

🧱 RenLUG — Adult LEGO® Fan Club The heart of everything we do. Monthly member meetings, collaborative builds, community displays, and a close-knit group of adult builders across Central Florida. Membership info →

🎨 Brick Renaissance — A Celebration of LEGO® Art & Innovation Community STEM events celebrating the creativity and innovation of LEGO® art and sculpture. Produced as art installations, standalone events and as programming within partner venues including the Orlando Science Center. All ages and families welcome.

🔍 Brick Quest — Treasure Hunt & Escape Room Experiences Treasure hunts, escape room adventures, and puzzle challenges using LEGO® builds and themed environments. Sparks imagination while building teamwork, problem-solving, and critical thinking. Includes seasonal Brick Quest Holiday Treasure Hunts in the community.

🏎️ Royal Rally Racing — Florida’s Only LUG-Operated Gravity LEGO® Track Participants design and build gravity-powered LEGO® cars, then race them on RenLUG’s custom Royal Rally track — learning engineering, physics, and iterative design through hands-on fun. Available to schools, libraries, scouts, museums, and community organizations. Learn more →

⚙️ Great Ball Contraption (GBC) A collaborative chain-reaction LEGO® engineering exhibit where member-built modules link together to pass balls in a continuous sequence — demonstrating mechanical engineering, automation, and systems thinking in a visual and captivating format.

Core Values

• Community — Building strong connections and relationships among members and with the broader Central Florida community. Community is the reason RenLUG exists.
• Communication — Keeping members informed, engaged, and heard through transparent and timely sharing of news, ideas, and decisions.
• Collaboration — Fostering cooperation, shared projects, and mutual support — because every build is better together.
• Creativity — Encouraging and celebrating diverse expressions of creativity across every genre, skill level, and building style.
• Inspiration — Sparking curiosity, personal growth, and wonder — in our members and in every community we reach through LEGO® building. 
• Inclusivity — Welcoming individuals of all backgrounds, skill levels, interests, and abilities — in an environment where respect and cooperation are expected of everyone.
• Transparency — Operating openly and accountably as a public-facing nonprofit, with honest communication to members, partners, and the public.

Everyone is Awesome

We intentionally keep our group membership activities within these three counties — this keeps RenLUG as a truly local group, maintains a close-knit friend and hobby group with a true community feel, and reduces travel times so we can remain responsive to local needs.

Ready to find your people? Apply to join RenLUG →

Our Approach to STEM

RenLUG’s approach to STEM education reflects an evolving understanding of what skills are necessary for future innovation. By emphasizing problem-solving, creativity, and forward-thinking, RenLUG recognizes that STEM (Science, Technology, Engineering, and Math) is a foundation that can be enhanced through broader frameworks:

STEAM adds Arts to STEM — recognizing the value of creativity and design thinking alongside technical skills. The integration of the arts encourages innovative solutions and a more holistic approach to problem-solving.

STREAM adds Reading (and/or Research) and Arts — emphasizing literacy, investigation, and communication as essential complements to technical knowledge. Research sharpens critical thinking, and Reading is essential for communication, while the Arts still promote creativity.

By embracing these variations, RenLUG’s philosophy supports an interdisciplinary, future-focused model of education that equips learners with diverse tools for tackling modern challenges.

RenLUG’s mission to celebrate LEGO® Art and Innovation while pushing boundaries through problem-solving, learning, and forward-thinking captures the essence of creativity and progress in the LEGO® hobby. This approach ensures that the community remains dynamic and continuously evolves, embracing new ideas and challenges.

What Happens at Meetings

Regular meetings may include LEGO® build challenges, parts drafts (members trade or claim LEGO® elements), technique sharing, set reviews, project showcases, and planning for upcoming events and community displays. It’s not uncommon to extend the meeting by heading to a local restaurant for more informal conversation.

Aside from meetings, we do what any other group of friends that share a hobby do – general socialization, potlucks and bbqs with good food and conversation, and activities together which are not necessarily LEGO® related. Of course, there are activities related to the LEGO® hobby which can include watch parties, parts sorting days, working on individual and collaborative projects, planning displays, and volunteering at geek and STEM events.

Empowering Creativity Across Central Florida

RenLUG focuses its efforts within three core counties to maintain a strong local connection, community impact and presence. Our local focus of just the cities and counties in the Orlando Metro Area makes meetings and transportation to events more convenient and accessible for our members.

• Seminole County – Sanford, Altamonte Springs, Oviedo, Winter Springs, Longwood, Casselberry, Lake Mary, Fern Park, Heathrow, Chuluota
• Orange County – Orlando, Apopka, Ocoee, Winter Garden, Winter Park, Oakland, Maitland, Belle Isle, Edgewood, Windermere, Waterford, Lake Buena Vista
• Lake County – Clermont, Leesburg, Eustis, Tavares, Mount Dora, Minneola, Lady Lake, Groveland, Fruitland Park, Umatilla

Our extended outreach area includes these adjacent counties:

• Brevard – Cocoa, Cocoa West, Rockledge, Merritt Island, Suntree-Viera, Palm Shores, Melbourne, Melbourne Village, West Melbourne, Grant-Valkaria, Palm Bay, Malabar, Indialantic, Melbourne Beach, Indian Harbour Beach, South Patrick Shores, Cape Canaveral, Cocoa Beach, Patrick Air Force Base, Satellite Beach
• Marion – Anthony, Belleview, Candler, Citra, Dunnellon, Eastlake Weir, Fairfield, Fort McCoy, Lowell, McIntosh, Ocala, Ocklawaha, Orange Lake, Orange Springs, Reddick, Silver Springs, Sparr, Summerfield, Weirsdale
• Polk – Auburndale, Bartow, Davenport, Dundee, Eagle Lake, Fort Meade, Four Corners, Frostproof, Haines City, Highland Park, Hillcrest Heights, Lake Alfred, Lake Hamilton, Lakeland, Lake Wales, Mulberry, Poinciana, Polk City, Winter Haven (Note: Our friends of Tampa Bay LUG & Lego Ladies of Tampa Bay – page / group, are also active in Polk County)
• Osceola – Kissimmee, St Cloud, Kenansville, Celebration, Buenaventura Lakes, Campbell, Four Corners, Poinciana, Yeehaw Junction, Bull Creek, Deer Park, Harmony, Holopaw, Narcoossee, Whittier
• Sumter – Bushnell, Center Hill, Coleman, Webster, Wildwood, Lake Panasoffkee, The Villages, Croom-A-Coochee, Cumpressco, Linden, Mabel, Oak Grove, Orange Home, Oxford, Royal, Rutland, St. Catherine, Sumterville, Tarrytown, Wahoo
• Volusia – Daytona Beach, Daytona Beach Shores, DeBary, DeLand, Deltona, Edgewater, Holly Hill, Lake Helen, New Smyrna Beach, Oak Hill, Orange City, Ormond Beach, Port Orange, South Daytona, Pierson, Ponce Inlet

See full geographic area →