How puzzles, kids, and a little imagination inspired something bigger.
My name is Celesta and I am the founder of Think Outside the Box. Here is my story.
When I first started building escape room games, I had one goal: to bring people together for something fun. But over time, I realized something deeper was happening—families were communicating more, students were lighting up with excitement, and communities were gathering around shared stories and challenges.
I soon began to notice that while the people playing my games were enjoying these advantages, there were many in our area that were not because it was inaccessible to them.
I began thinking how I can offer the same kind of fun at a lower price point. I wanted to offer the same advantages of an escape room to more people in Elkhart County.
At my last escape room location, I had a large room that I wanted to make into a classroom size game complete with screens on the walls, Chromebooks for the tables and physical puzzles to do. I had all the ideas but didn’t have the time to get it going before I had to leave the location.
So I decided it was important enough to prioritize creating free and low cost games over getting the escape rooms going again.
That’s when Think Outside the Box was born.
It’s not just about puzzles. It’s about curiosity, Creativity, and connection. And the belief that every child and every family deserves access to hands-on, brain-building fun—whether it’s in a park, a classroom, or at the library on a rainy Saturday.
This blog will be your behind-the-scenes peek into what we’re building:
🧩 New games
🎉 Community events
🛠️ Sneak peeks into puzzle design
💡 Educational ideas for home and school
…and the people who make it all happen.
We’re kicking things off with:
📱 Our brand new TOBI app will power an epic scavenger hunt across Elkhart County, full of places to explore and puzzles to solve. we are launching this at the Elkhart County 4H Fair!
🎈 Our first free kids’ event debuts this August 2nd at the Elkhart County Library downtown —come join us!
🔐 And we’re planning the escape room for classrooms, thanks to the support of donors and volunteers in early 2026.
If you believe in playful learning, community connection, and the magic of solving things together, we invite you to follow along, join the fun, and maybe even help us grow.
Let’s unlock something amazing—together.
– Celesta Penney, Founder