Going to WordCamp Pune!

10 days ago HeroPress contributor Saurabh Shukla sent me an email asking that I come to WordCamp Pune, India to present about HeroPress.  I didn’t even know WordCamp Pune was happening, but I had wanted to go to WordCamp Mumbai VERY much, so I was incredibly excited.

My first thought was “How can I afford to go?”  The plane ticket alone is almost $1400!  In the end I decided to crowdfund the trip.  HeroPress is about people helping other people, and it seemed appropriate to have the HeroPress community support something like this.

So last Friday I turned on the GoFundMe.  It immediately became apparent this was something people believed in as contributions began pouring in.  A few of them were relatively large, but I was very happy to see a higher number of people with small amounts.  I’d much rather have a large support base than a small rich one.

Yesterday the GoFundMe goal was reached!  Besides the obvious joy of being able to go, I was very pleased for a number of reasons.

1. There were quite a few contributors I didn’t know.  This means it’s not just my friends being nice.
2. There were quite a few contributors from India.  This implies to me that they WANT me to come, it’s not just Saurabh thinking it’s a good idea.
3. The fact that it worked at all tells me that people in general think HeroPress is a worthwhile venture, and is doing some good.

Another interesting note is that yesterday was the second highest traffic day in HeroPress history, second only to the very first essay.  That tells me that this process of raising funds also raised a lot of awareness, which in the long run will be far more valuable.

Thank you, thank you, THANK YOU to all who spread the word, contributed, and were generally supportive of our goals.  HeroPress wouldn’t happen without you.