Non-Profit Data Base Project - The Design

Non-Profit Executive Assistant 

After selling my software company in 2000, retirement seemed to be my next career option. Not to be. Quickly, I became very board - Having delivered news papers and working in my grandfather's general store / farm since 10 year old. I needed something to do.  Challenging myself to "Escape" adventures I volunteering at non-profits as Rhonda.

At first, I was shocked as to how under-funder many non-profits were. I saw worthy caused being managed by overworked individuals who cared deeply about their cause; so different from corporate-world enterprises. Although starting out delivering meals, and cleaning up kitchens, it did not take the staff long to discover I had computer skills. "Can you help with this mail-merge?" 

Thus I learned several non-profit database systems and was amazed to see many organization struggling with over priced and over complicated software systems. If you are the Metropolitan Museum of Art or the American National Red Cross, maybe justifiable. Local non-profits and museums, although having similar needs, were struggling to justify the monthly software's subscription cost or just giving up and using only EXCEL.  

2017 Volunteering
Working the check in desk at a non-profit event

I started building a system about 2006 for the small non-profits with big needs;  donation tracking / acknowledgement letters, member renewals / reminders. and event management (tickets / check in). I put the project on the shelf waiting for a client I could offer it to and complete the coding; real world utilization. 

That took longer than I expected and as I detailed yesterday how finally Flagler Museum gave me the opportunity to complete the project. Almost now a complete re-write was needed because the development platform had improved. It was worth it. At least I had a starting template and now additional experience with other systems. I knew what was needed to fulfill the sometimes complex tracking and accounting of gifts. 

"Nailing Jell-O to a tree" is an idiom that describes best the extremely difficult or sometimes impossible coding tasks. However, it applies aptly to system's engineering projects. During the final phase, you keep working at it and eventually you can have a finished project. Just a few more nails, and I will be done...

Continued Tomorrow...