> LOL. I'm showing my age. When I was in school, the boys all took shop and
> the girls took home economics. I enjoyed learning to sew, but cooking was
> never really my thing (just ask my family). Of course, I might have made a
> word choice error and meant to say "sexier," but since I'm a part time
> writer, that just couldn't be the case.

> Lisa

> On Oct 25, 2012, at 2:00 PM, Dana Nelson <heibai...@gmail.com> wrote:

> Sexist maker equipment? Did something happen and I don't know about it?
> On Oct 25, 2012 1:58 PM, "Lisa Thierbach" <lisa.thierb...@gmail.com>
> wrote:

>> I realize I've only been a member for a couple of months, and probably
>> don't understand much about AHA yet, but I've got some thoughts.

>> I have some ideas on what could make the "showing people around" thing
>> work a bit better based on my observations. I don't think it helps that the
>> sexist maker equipment is hidden in the back. I think the people working
>> behind the counter need some more tools and guidance to get the excitement
>> up.

>> BTW, no excuse for showing disrespect for anyone. Better not do that
>> around me or I'll pull the mom card on you.

>> Lisa

>> On Oct 25, 2012, at 9:31 AM, Dana Nelson <heibai...@gmail.com> wrote:

>> M.S.-
>> Everyone can show up to board meetings. They are open to the public.
>> Holding a seperate day never really panned out well in the past.

>> Also, the people working shift are supposed to be greeting people and
>> showing them around, giving AHA a more friendly appearance. If they aren't
>> doing their job, tell them. You pay membership, you are their boss.

>> On Thu, Oct 25, 2012 at 9:29 AM, Dana Nelson <heibai...@gmail.com> wrote:

>>> Okay, here's my answer. I agree with a lot of what the other
>>> say regarding outreach, accountability, etc.

>>> And before I start, I will warn that this may sound rant like. I am very
>>> passionate about this question, as I see it as an emergency that we need to
>>> be stepping up and doing something about NOW. Everyone that boasts to other
>>> people about how they are members, how they are part of the community, and
>>> yet only come down here on build nights to socialize, this question is for
>>> you. We are sinking, how are you helping to keep us afloat?

>>> I am working on developing curriculum and schedules for local schools to
>>> be able to come down to AHA for field trips. Theoretically, this could make
>>> us $150 for 3-4 hours of work during hours in which the space isn't being
>>> utilized. We already have a teacher interested, which could lead to a whole
>>> school, which could lead to about 5 classrooms. Once ideas are settled and
>>> implemented though, we could send this to other schools.

>>> Another plan, which I am working on a couple different options and will
>>> bring to the board as soon as we know who the new board is, if we are
>>> struggling to pay our bills, why do we still have so many free members
>>> working in exchange for a membership. While this is awesome that we do
>>> this, we can't really afford to. The members working behind the counter are
>>> an exception to this, I think, as it's extremely difficult to get people to
>>> work a shift. I work shift, and work a lot doing other things, and ya know
>>> what? I'm still paying my membership this month because I know that my
>>> community is suffering.

>>> One thing people are forgetting, 1/3 of our income is made up from the
>>> gaming portion of All Hands Active!!! Even with this fact,
>>> I continually hear comments about how "They're just gamers." and so on.
>>> It's no secret that over the past few years, the gaming side has gone down
>>> a bit, but I've heard and know people that have flat out said, "I stopped
>>> coming back to Ops because of the AHA people." We all need to be more
>>> respectful as far as noise go and need to make an effort to think about
>>> what they want from the organization.

>>> On Wed, Oct 24, 2012 at 10:51 PM, Lisa Thierbach <lis...@me.com> wrote:

>>>> I would very much like to help with ideas and actions for making money.
>>>> I just joined AHA and don't want to see such an awesome group of people
>>>> struggle with money. Maybe we could start a separate email topic and/or
>>>> arrange a group meeting.

>>>> Lisa

>>>> On Oct 24, 2012, at 10:00 PM, N Y <nymis...@gmail.com> wrote:

>>>> > Good question! We have a very small window here, so I wanted to focus
>>>> on
>>>> > something getting us some funds quickly, then when we are solid,
>>>> working
>>>> > toward future alliances.  My idea is to take a few days to canvas the
>>>> > downtown area (and perhaps beyond) with some nice business cards and a
>>>> > convincing pitch.  I would like to meet with organizations in the area
>>>> > who might be sympathetic to our cause, and who could donate a bit of
>>>> > money to our cause.  Another short-term idea is to run a Kickstarter
>>>> to
>>>> > help supplement any donations we might get from the first idea.  The
>>>> > only "drawback" there is that we will need a small, dedicated team to
>>>> > work on spreading the word and making gifts.  If it comes down to it,
>>>> I
>>>> > will personally invest the money needed to help make these gifts.

>>>> > More in the big picture (but we can start now), I would like to
>>>> > stimulate our own membership by investigating what it will take to
>>>> > become self-sufficient through dues alone.  Being self-sufficient is
>>>> the
>>>> > ultimate goal, since donors can eventually burn out.  We need to offer
>>>> > people a great reason to give us $20-$50 every month.  We have record
>>>> > membership, so what can we do to ensure we hold that trend, and make
>>>> it
>>>> > pay the bills? To that end, I would like to organize quarterly
>>>> feedback
>>>> > surveys.  We have not polled the membership as a whole in a very long
>>>> > time! How do we make AHA better?

>>>> > There are a few other ideas I can bring to the table, but I would also
>>>> > like to see what other people have in mind (and I'd like to hear more
>>>> > from everyone who can read this, not just nominees/directors!).  I
>>>> think
>>>> > that the joy of having a group of committed people working on a
>>>> problem
>>>> > is that we can bounce around all these ideas and polish them up into
>>>> > something that will help us out.

>>>> > As an aside: another thing I really would want to focus on this term
>>>> is
>>>> > encouraging all directors (and that certainly would include me!) to
>>>> > develop their ability to follow through.  It is imperative for AHA's
>>>> > leaders to not only come up with ideas, but also to execute those
>>>> ideas
>>>> > in a timely fashion -- even if it means coordinating a larger team to
>>>> > make things happen.  I am ready!

>>>> > -- Nate Y.

>>>> > On 10/24/2012 07:46 PM, Dana Nelson wrote:
>>>> >> So out of curiousity, because this is a MAJOR issue right now, and
>>>> you can
>>>> >> treat it as a debate style question if you wish:

>>>> >> If you are elected to the AHA board, what will you do to help your
>>>> favorite
>>>> >> hackerspace *MAKE IT'S DECEMBER RENT* as we are still in the hole.
>>>> Your
>>>> >> hackerspace needs you!

>>>> >> I think this is just as important as the national deficit in our
>>>> little
>>>> >> community, and if you wish to help guide the hackerspace forward, you
>>>> >> should be helping with it being able to pay it's bills.

>>>> >> As for me asking this in an open forum, I think all of the AHA
>>>> members
>>>> >> would be interested to know your amazing plans or intentions before
>>>> they
>>>> >> vote tomorrow during Build Night!

>>>> >> So, get to it candidates, I'll share mine when I know I won't be the
>>>> only
>>>> >> one fretting over such circumstances.

>>> --
>>> Dana Nelson
>>> *All Hands Active*
>>> *AHAkids Class Coordinator*

>> --
>> Dana Nelson
>> *All Hands Active*
>> *AHAkids Class Coordinator*