The Apache Software Foundation

As you know, the ASF turned 10 this year — our celebrations kicked off with cake at ApacheCon Europe this past March. We were thrilled to receive birthday wishes from so many members from the Apache community from across the world.

Our festivities will continue at ApacheCon US (Oakland, California), where we will be holding the Big Feather Birthday Bash and related community events during the conference. We anticipate seeing many of you there!

Some of you are unable to join us in person, but we don't want you to miss out on the fun. As such, we're inviting our global community to "Raise a Glass to Apache" and celebrate this landmark event at your own local gathering. Recognizing Apache developers and users as part of the ASF's 10th Anniversary is very important to us. We want you to join the fun, meet other Apache enthusiasts, make new friends, put faces to the names behind those emails, and, of course, engage in all things Apache.

We understand that communities have their own local culture and preferences: you are welcome to host the type of event best suited to your needs. Preferably, this will take place during the week of ApacheCon (2-6 November, 2009; the Big Feather Birthday Bash is on Wednesday, 4 November) —  your event can be held on any day of that week, at any time of the day or night that is most convenient for you. Events include but are not limited to:

- Social Gatherings – getting together over coffee, lunch, drinks, or dinner
- Tech Talks – individual or industry presentations given about ASF projects and actvities
- Product Demos – showcasing how Apache technologies are powering creative and robust solutions
- Hackathon – collaborating on Apache code bases with ASF Committers
- MeetUps or GetTogethers – featuring talks or presentations on a specific Apache Project or activity
- Networking and Job Match – connecting developers with users, employers with potential hires, clients with contractors/consultants, etc.

Can't wait until ApacheCon? That's OK: we're always up for a celebration, so feel free to get started as soon as you'd like — you can Raise a Glass to Apache at an upcoming conference such as the OpenWorld Forum (Paris), SpringOne 2GX (New Orleans), CPOSC 2009 (Harrisburg, PA), FOSS4G 2009 (Sydney), NLUUG Open Web (Amsterdam), UTOSC 2009 (Sandy, UT), and OSMC 2009 (Nürnberg), among others.

So let's get started! There are three steps to make your event happen:

Step 1: Organize. Decide who will be the host(s)/main point(s) of contact, where the event will be held, the day and time, the format, and any costs.

Step 2: Publicize. Spread the word to your coworkers, the press, and your friends. Post details on your event on blogs, mailing lists, event listings, etc. Drive enthusiasm by discussing the event details to the media and on podcasts. Ask people who will be there to invite other groups who may be interested.

Step 3: Apprise. Share your goodwill with the Apache community. Wish the ASF a happy anniversary on the Foundation blog;  post photos of your event online; and submit a "MyApache" video tribute (can be one or more of the following -- 1-2 minutes describing why you love Apache; 1-2 minutes of your group Raising a Glass to Apache/singing Happy Birthday; 2-5 minutes describing the cool ways you use ASF technologies ... be sure to mention which Apache projects you use as well as your results.)

The important thing is to have fun! Get inspired by checking out the ASF's YouTube channel at http://www.youtube.com/user/TheApacheFoundation. "MyApache" submissions received by 2 October (midnight US Pacific time/GMT-8) will receive priority consideration to be featured in the ASF's ApacheWay channel and at the Big Feather Birthday Bash!

A schedule of all confirmed events will be posted on the ApacheCon site. To be included in the list, please send a copy of your invitation (including the date, time, and location) to sk@apache.org. I will send you information on how to add your event in the ApacheCon network, how to submit your "MyApache" tributes, as well as suggestions on how to organize and publicize your event.

Feel free to contact me if you have any questions. We look forward to hearing from you!

- Sally