Entrepreneurs Have Lost a Good Friend

I just received the stunning and very sad news that John Dilts, Founder and President of the Maverick Angels, has passed away. I knew he had been sick for a while, but I don’t think even he knew he was this sick. The cause of his tragic death has not yet been announced. I had known John for about four years, since he first brought a Maverick Angels’ Arena Meeting to Pratt & Whitney Rocketdyne’s Leadership & Learning Center. There, amidst the rocket engine hardware of some 50 years of America’s space program, I got my first taste of what Angel Investing and, really, entrepreneurship was all about. My relationship with John continued, albeit on a very low-key basis, until a few months ago, when I accepted an early severance package from PWR.

John was one of the first people I contacted and he was eager to find a way I could fit into what the Maverick Angels were doing. Whether or not we were destined to become colleagues or partners, I will now never know. However, John was both an inspiration and a guiding light and I will miss his presence. My condolences go out to his family, his colleagues, and his numerous friends. Here is a link to a memorial page his organization has stood up in his memory. Rest in Peace, John.