Author Archives: J Simmons

Notes from “Introduction to Fundraising Planning” workshop

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Update: Added highlights from the workshop.

On May 1, I went to a workshop on fundraising planning at the Dayton Metro Libray.  The workshop was held by the Foundation Center, and was based on the book Securing Your Organization’s Future.  A recorded version of this workshop is available here and the more material on the subject of fundraising planning is available from the Foundation Center here.

Fundraising planning has several key benefits for organizations (emphasis added):

  1. Helps prioritize programs and fundraising efforts
  2. Increases board awareness and involvement in programs and fundraising
  3. (more…)

Reflections on HQ Requirements and Open Design

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Loose Confederation of Skunk Works

I first saw the above image in a briefing on FIST by Dan Ward.  It struck me as very important at the time (and still does) as a metaphor for how open source can make the transition to hardware (open design).  In open source software development, often the participants need only be connected virtually.  Everyone has a computer they use for development or testing, and they can communicate and collaborate over internet services (web forums, mailing lists, code repositories, wikis, etc).  (more…)

Big News

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A momentous occasion in Mach 30 history occurred this past weekend.  The Mach 30 Board of Directors consensed on the Articles of Incorporation and is in the process of submitting them to the state of Ohio.  This is the first step to becoming a recognized non-profit and sets us on our way to moving from a forming non-profit to a non-profit running its first programs.  Congratulations again to the Board and thank you for all your hard work and dedication.

ISPCS Day 2 plus Lunar Lander Challenge

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The rest of my trip to Las Cruces went by in a blur, so I am just now writing my post about the rest of the trip.  Day two of ISPCS included several panels about organizations involved in commercial space flight, some of which have some really great looking online resources I want to share.  Day two’s keynote was of special interest as it told a story that relates to what Mach 30 is trying to do for commercial space flight.  Finally, I was able to attend the Lunar Lander Challenge, which was a blast to watch in person.

The list of organizations that participated in panels on day two included non-profits, commercial companies, government offices, and spaceports.  Some of the presenters discussed online resources their organizations produce, and I wanted to include a few of the most promising ones here. (more…)