Going Out Group Retirement
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UPDATE #2: As of 10.14.19, the Going Out Groups (20s & 30s Going Out Group, 30s & 40s Going Out Group, Global Travelers Going Out Group) are now shut down. Thank you to everyone for being a part of them over the years!
UPDATE #1: Over the past couple of months, I’ve received quite a few messages, and a handful of offers to purchase and take over the groups. I seriously entertained a few of them, but long story short, I didn’t feel any of the offers met the needs for myself and / or the group. So as it stands now, and unless another offer comes along that I feel is right for the groups, the groups will come to a final end after my last event (the Japan trip) in September. Thank you again to those that reached out, and to everyone else for all the good times!
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April 2nd, 2019 (sent out as an email to the group)
It is with mixed emotions that I announce my retirement from running the Going Out Groups to include:
- 20s & 30s Going Out Group
- 30s & 40s Going Out Group
- Global Travelers Going Out Group
I will continue to host “regular” local events through to the end of this May, and the Japan trip in September will be the final international trip that I host. It would be great to see some of you over the next couple of months at one (or more) of my final events (and / or in Japan).
(I will still continue to run and host events for the eWheel Going Out Group)
If I’m able to find a suitable replacement, the groups will continue on (with my help of course). Otherwise, I’ll be shutting the groups down for good. If you or anyone you know is interested in purchasing the group, please let me know. Serious inquiries only. (Email jt [at] goingoutgroup [dot] com, do NOT send a Meetup or Facebook message)
I’m not sure what the next part of my life entails, but I hope it will be as good as the front part of it (and I’m open to ideas!).
For those interested in my backstory, I first joined the 20s & 30s Going Out Group 13 years ago (where did the time go??) after I had gotten out of a long-term relationship (she’s actually the one that suggested that I attend some events on Meetup). In short, the founder of the group moved out of the area, and I ended up taking it over. At the time, it had just 200 members. Since then, I’ve somehow managed to grow the 20s & 30s Going Out Group to just shy of 40,000 members!… Somewhere along the way, I got a little older and I started the 30s & 40s Going Out Group. That group has now grown to over 20,000 members. Lastly, I took over the Global Travelers Going Out Group and grew that group from 2000 to 3300 members (and we’ve traveled the world over, to include Costa Rica, Peru, Alaska, Thailand, South Africa, Australia, Greece, and most recently, New Zealand)!
To date, through our regular-occurring charity happy hours, we’ve helped to fundraise nearly $200,000 for nonprofit charities (mostly local to DC)… something I’m proud to have been a part of, and happy to have facilitated. Results here, here, and here.
Other random fun facts: As of the end of 2018, I’ve hosted over 950 (953) events, with over 140,000 (142,156) RSVPs to those events.
Over the years, I’ve met many incredible people through the groups (including my amazing wife Shelly), and it’s a chapter of my life I’ll always look back on with fondness. I’ll definitely miss putting together events for others on this scale and I’ll miss seeing all of the people that I’ve met, especially those that attended the events on a regular basis. Although the groups that I run are not singles groups, I know some people have started relationships, and even have gotten married, by first meeting through one of my events. So if that’s you, please share your story. It’s something I really enjoy hearing about!
The downside of hosting events every weekend meant that I had little availability to accept invites to friends’ outings. I look forward to being able to say “yes” to those invites a bit more often now, and to be able to spend quality time with my beautiful wife, adorable son, family, and friends.
Thank you to everyone that I’ve met along the way while running the groups, it’s been an honor and a pleasure!
J.T.
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