23,584 visits—How do you measure 3 #VCjawn years?   

With 23,584 visits to date, we’re excited to celebrate Venture Café Philadelphia’s 3rd birthday with you!  Even with that number, it’s tough to measure three #vcjawn years filled with:

• serendipitous connections (check out Everyday Web founders  and Mask On! Philly both who met their co-founders at #VCJawn)

• mentorship moments (ICYMI: The Citizen’s feature of previous Founder-in-Residence Tanya Morris and current Founder-in-Residence, Jessie Garcia was named as one of the 17 most influential engineers in Philadelphia)

• interactive, educational sessions (learn more about kickstarting your entrepreneurial journey with OnRamp or take an in-depth look at gene and cell therapy)

There have been many team members who have fueled the Thursday Gatherings supported by the Venture Café Global Network; community partners who shared their expertise; and of course, you, the #VCjawn community who brought your curiosity and enthusiasm each week.

There have also been changes–remember our first birthday, when we turned red (#vcjawn’s version)? We pivoted to fully virtual during the early days of COVID-19 even testing out new digital ways of gathering globally and now are in the midst of (re)designing our hybrid experience. Throughout this time, our charge to experiment together and model innovative pivots was most critical.

For maintaining the spirit and gathering space (virtual, in-person, and hybrid) each Thursday, I’d like to raise a (virtual) glass to our team members past and present: Paige Brala, Natalie Coyle, Emily Meltzer, Angela McQuillan, Kirwei Lo, Garry Johnson III, Adriana Teta, Allyson Yu, and our Executive Director for her leadership, Tracy Brala.

Also, special thanks to: Eamon Gallagher, John Landers, Lynette Moore, Jake Ritzheimer, Emily Sullivan, and Aron Starosta for their weekly support.

We hope you can join us to toast in person and for a slice of cake.

And to those who are celebrating, Happy Hanukkah!

Jen