CodeMash 2026: Where Technical Learning Meets Community Connection

Every January, developers from across the world head to CodeMash at the Kalahari Resort in Ohio, US - equal parts deep technical learning and community warmth. It's the kind of event where you park your car, stay onsite for days, and the hallway conversations become the main track. For me, it feels like a geek family reunion: you don't just meet people - you really get to know and connect with them.

That community is also why Microsoft MVPs travel so far to be here - from Washington and Arizona to Texas, Ontario (Canada), Michigan, Minnesota, Ohio, and beyond. In 2026, MVPs delivered 30 sessions and workshops, and many also volunteered behind the scenes - helping with speaker selection, conference operations, and efforts that keep CodeMash welcoming.

MVP Impact: On Stage, Behind the Scenes, and in the Hallways

CodeMash is packed with great talks, but what makes it stick is how the community shows up for each other. This year, Microsoft MVPs covered cloud, AI, security, data, and developer tools - and also gave back through volunteer leadership, from helping with speaker/session selection to supporting safety and inclusion. That mix of strong content plus shared ownership is what turns a conference into a community.

CodeMash also brings families along for the ride. KidzMash is a free family track where kids learn by building - plus hands-on time in the Maker Space (soldering, CAD/3D design, electronics labs, and more). It's a reminder that the curiosity that fuels great engineering can start early.

It's hard to explain CodeMash without talking about the "everything else." MVP Sam Basu put it best: "Codemash has always been a special place to see old friends and make new ones." And MVP Robert Fornal captured the returning-attendee feeling in one line: "The energy of the conference is amazing... there's always something new to see and learn."

Voices from CodeMash: The Stories Behind the Sessions

Ask anyone why they came to CodeMash, and you'll hear the same themes - community, learning, and that unique "park once and stay awhile" rhythm. Of course, first you have to get there - which in January often means snow.

MVP Joseph Guadagno flew in from Arizona and shared, "It's been a really long time since I've driven in the snow." He still made the trip for the people—especially the Midwest community he doesn't see as often: "The event is definitely worth it."

MVP Mike Benkovich had an appropriately wintery travel tale: "Going thru Cleveland to get to Sandusky was an adventure... we got the full effects of drifting snow, but we made it." His verdict after arriving: "Highly recommended!"

MVP James Petty told me CodeMash has turned into a tradition: "Honestly? CodeMash has become our family vacation tradition." And yes, they learned the hard way not to ignore the forecast: "We... tried to leave during Thursday's snowstorm - not our smartest move."

Why MVPs Come to CodeMash

CodeMash is built for builders - and the MVP sessions leaned hard into practical, hands-on takeaways - from AI and cloud to security, data, and developer productivity. The best talks weren't just interesting; they were the kind that send you home with a plan (and a backlog) for next week.

MVP Jake Hildreth shared he wasn't sure his topic would fit a dev-heavy conference—until it did: "I always felt like my special interest... was a little too niche." After a strong reaction to an earlier talk, he pitched it to CodeMash and got the response every speaker wants: "YES, PLEASE."

After his workshop, James Petty knew it landed when attendees started planning: "They already had 'to-do' lists ready for when they got back to work - they weren't just learning, they were ready to apply it immediately."

MVP Brian McKeiver had a simple "yep, this is why I came" moment: Thursday breakfast, looking out at a room full of people comparing notes, laughing, and reconnecting. "It made me smile," he said.

MVP Joseph Guadagno noted, "I ran into a former attendee that let me know she is speaking at this CodeMash because I inspired here based on my conversations with her at CodeMash and TechBash."

MVP Jonathan "J" Tower summed up why he keeps showing up in person: "I value being with the community in person. With so much work now done remotely and so much content available online, being face to face matters more than ever. I always enjoy seeing audiences understanding something new in a session, but the moments that I go for are the hallway and meal conversations, where people talk openly about what they are building, learning, or struggling with. Those connections are hard to replicate anywhere else but in-person."

"I Embraced the Fun and Chaos by Dressing Up..."

CodeMash is one of the rare conferences where serious technical learning and playful experimentation happily coexist - and KidzMash makes that impossible to miss. MVP Matt Eland described it perfectly: "You don't do any rehearsals because kids are chaotic and wonderful."

His advice for presenters is basically to show up prepared... and then roll with it: "You just embrace the chaos."

Where to Start

For a lot of developers, the hardest part of community involvement isn't motivation - it's knowing where to start. I asked a few MVPs what they'd tell someone who wants to begin contributing, and their answers all point to the same idea: start small, start now, and don't wait for permission.

Joseph Guadagno summed it up simply as, "Just volunteer, anything helps. Whether it's helping at the registration desk, telling people about the event, or speaking."

MVP Chris Woodruff said, "Don't wait for someone to invite you into the developer community." He recommends starting with meetups, conferences, and online forums - places where you can learn in public and meet people who share your curiosity.

MVP Hasan Savran mentioned, "Stop stressing and just give it a shot. You won't always be right, and that's okay. Speak up and share what you are thinking. It doesn't matter who you are; there will always be people who judge you and your knowledge. You are here to express yourself and tell a story from your viewpoint through your words or code. Learn to agree to disagree and move on."

Sam Basu shared "It's good to start small... everyone has to find a niche to be really good at something."

Jake Hildreth added "Build in public!" He shared that once he pushed past the "is this good enough?" fear, publishing his work made it easier for others to help—and for him to see his own growth over time.

MVP Stephen Bilogan kept it practical: "There is no one framework to rule them all." His nudge to attendees: try things, see what fits, and stay curious.

Brian McKeiver urged, "Don't wait... just be fearless." His take: share what you're learning from real work - what went wrong and what went right - because your perspective helps more people than you think.

The Best Moments Happen Offstage

The longer you attend, the more CodeMash becomes a timeline of friendships and memories. And if you ask people for their favorite moment, it's rarely just one session - it's the conversations between everything else.

Some of the best CodeMash memories don't come from a slide deck - they come from the in-between moments: a conversation you didn't expect, a table you sat at on a whim, a familiar face in a new hallway.

So I asked a simple question - one that always reveals what people value most about this place: "What do you love most about CodeMash and its community?"

MVP Samuel Gomez said it was "a tie between meeting fellow MVPs at dinner and being able to complete the 'quadfecta' of CodeMash roles this year (attendee, speaker, organizer and volunteer)." He added, "It was amazing to experience what goes behind the scenes... and all the hard work and love that goes into making an event like this happen."

MVP Deepthi Goguri shared her favorite moment was meeting other MVPs: "These are the type of moments which makes me feel home."

MVP Jim Bennett keeps it simple: "Dinner one evening, I just grabbed a seat at a table of folks I'd never met before and had a very enjoyable few hours chatting with them all. Having a welcoming community makes all the difference at an event, and it's so nice to meet new people, hear their stories, and geek out on technical concepts."

For him, those casual table conversations often end up being the most valuable part of the conference.

Closing Thoughts

CodeMash 2026 was a good reminder that while the tech changes fast, the best parts of our industry don't: curiosity, collaboration, and the joy of building things with (and for) other people. The MVPs brought strong technical content - but also the stories and generosity that make conferences feel human. And in a world where tech can sometimes feel overwhelming, those human moments are what keep us connected.

If you were at CodeMash, I hope you left with a few ideas you can use right away - and a few new friends. If you missed it, put it on your list for next year. Come for the sessions, stay for the conversations, and if you're ready to go deeper: submit a talk, volunteer, or help someone else take their first step.

Learn more (including the family-friendly KidzMash track) at codemash.org.