Name: The Good, The Bad, and The Ugly: How Three Founders Raised Money Their Own Way
Start: 2026-08-27T12:30:00.000-06:00
End: 2026-08-27T14:00:00.000-06:00
Location: Exponential Impact

Southern Colorado Startup Week (August 24–28) brings entrepreneurs, innovators, and community together in Colorado Springs, Florence, and Penrose.

SoCo Startup Week 2026

🚀 The Good, The Bad, and The Ugly: How Three Founders Raised Money Their Own Way

Exponential Impact HQ | Colorado Springs, CO

Most fundraising panels hand you the polished version. This one goes the other way. Three Colorado founders who each built real companies without running the standard venture playbook are going to walk you through the good, the bad, and the ugly of how they actually raised money. Owen Hill of Kleercard took meeting after meeting with VCs and walked away to build on angel funding. Wes Hill of Mente Medical pieced together grants and a regional fund to stay in control of his path. Allison Fitzpatrick of Actuate IOT let customers and partners bankroll the growth. Through live take-it-or-leave-it term sheet challenges, rapid-fire hot takes, and real war stories pulled from a jar, you’ll watch three smart people reach three completely different answers to the same question: whose money do I take, and what does it cost me? Bring your own fundraising dilemma. We’ll solve a few of them live.

Colorado founders, startups and innovators looking to learn more about the different avenues for funding with real life perspective.

Use the doors on the south east side of the building where the Exponential Impact sign is on the building.