On Sunday night, two weeks after his departure from Zip Code Wilmington, David Ginzberg finally found the words to say goodbye.
Let’s get this part out of the way first:
For those who are thinking “Oh no, what happened?” the short answer is: nothing. I decided it was time to pursue something new, and the Zip Code team supported me in that decision and helped plan a seamless departure. I have no doubt that the team, and the Zip Code alumni community, will continue to thrive and do great things going forward.
Being a technical instructor for Zip Code was clearly a satisfying job, but Ginzberg, a founder of Open Data Delaware, needed more time with his other projects.
Open Data, which started as a meetup, is a zero cashflow organization right now, but there are plans to make it a nonprofit organization. That alone demands more time than he could previously spare.
Then there’s StartingBloc, a national fellowship of leaders working to make a meaningful social impact. Ginzberg was about to head down to D.C. for five days of mentoring a group of new fellows when we spoke. He’s been a fellow himself since 2015, but hadn’t been able to do much with the organization. “I’ve been in the Facebook group, and that’s about it,” he said
When he does go to StartingBloc gatherings, he travels to New York. “I think I’m the only fellow in Delaware,” Ginzberg says. If there were more Delaware fellows, they could have their own gatherings in the First State, as Philly fellows do. “If anyone in Delaware is interested in the program, they can reach out to me.”
Ginzberg may not have as much time for mentoring in the future. “I just got my business license and am starting an independent consulting company,” he said. For now, it’s called David Ginzberg Consulting, and the intended focus is on civic tech and emerging technologies.
“Intended,” because, at the moment, he’s taking it slow. “I’m sort of taking some time off,” he says. The (possibly rebranded) David Ginzberg Consulting will be rolling soon enough.
“I don’t know how to relax.”
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