From Isolation to Integration: How Mentorship Guided Wyoming Stargazing Through Adversity and Into a Historic Merger
By Brittany Walters, Silicon Couloir Director of Entrepreneurship
Running a small, early-stage business can be one of the most rewarding and, at times, most isolating professional experiences there is. For Samuel Singer, founder of Wyoming Stargazing, that reality defined nearly a decade of leadership. He built the Jackson-based 501(c)(3) into one of the region's most trusted astronomy education organizations, offering public and private stargazing tours, astrophotography programs, and free community events under some of the darkest skies in the lower 48 states. But for many years, Samuel worked towards this mission often alone in his office, and without an external advisory team to lean on when making difficult day-to-day decisions. That changed when he joined the TEAMS mentor program. What followed was a transformation that no one, including Singer himself, could have fully anticipated.
Today, Wyoming Stargazing operates as part of Teton Science Schools (TSS), one of the region's most respected educational nonprofits. The merger, driven by mission alignment, strategic timing, and steady mentorship, stands as a testament to what is possible when entrepreneurs have the right support system behind them.
Singer joined TEAMS in September of 2023, coming off one of the most difficult seasons the organization had experienced. After a post-pandemic surge in outdoor tourism made 2021 and 2022 banner years, the summer of 2023 brought relentless rain and wildfire smoke, conditions that made stargazing nearly impossible and forced more refunds than the organization had ever issued. The financial and emotional toll was significant.
"I was grasping at straws," Singer reflected. "I needed to figure out how to move things forward if I had another summer like that."
Singer is candid about what made TEAMS so meaningful in those early months: the simple act of having a dedicated, knowledgeable group of business professionals to think alongside him. As a solo nonprofit founder, having an opportunity to ask questions, receive advice, and mirror thinking with others on a regular cadence was something he hadn’t had prior. His mentor team, which included individuals with legal background, product development background, scaling expertise and first-hand acquisition experience, brought a combination of practical expertise and strategic vision that proved immediately useful. Gaile Gordon, one of Singer's TEAMS mentors recalls that "Samuel was wonderful to work with because he was truly open to feedback and put a lot of thought into questions and challenges presented by his mentor team. That made every conversation more productive."
In response to the revenue volatility created by weather-dependent programming, Singer's mentors encouraged him to explore new booking channels. Acting on their recommendation, he set up Wyoming Stargazing on Airbnb as a travel experience platform, generating new bookings without commission overhead and reaching visitors who might not have otherwise discovered the organization. The mentors also helped Singer think critically about how to differentiate his offerings and stay focused on what made Wyoming Stargazing's model uniquely valuable.
During this same period, Singer was navigating significant community partnership situations that required both strategic clarity and professional finesse. His mentor team provided unified support and helped him approach the dynamics with tact, keeping the organization's long-term interests and reputation intact. "The most important thing I got from mentorship was unified support that what I was doing was the right thing," Singer said.
Some of the most valuable conversations Singer had with his mentors were not about crisis management. They were about vision. Gordon describes a pattern of prompting Singer to think beyond the boundaries he had set for himself. “We would ask questions like: why the name Wyoming Stargazing? Why not expand beyond Wyoming?” Gordon said. “These were very strategic questions that would cause him to pause and to ponder. It was clear that Samuel would go back to his desk and really sit with them.” During one exchange about potential revenue streams, mentor Alex Rienzie asked him a question that changed the trajectory of his entrepreneurial thinking: "Are there other areas of your life that you're passionate about that you could channel into the business to further diversify revenue?" Singer, a new father, found his answer at home. Watching his daughter consume the children's educational content available on streaming platforms, he recognized a gap. As an educator, he knew he could do better. A new concept emerged: Hello Earthlings, an educational media venture for young learners and their parents. Singer recently received a Youth Philanthropy grant from the Jackson Hole Community Foundation as seed funding to further develop the concept.
Perhaps no chapter of Singer's TEAMS journey illustrates the program's value more vividly than the merger with Teton Science Schools. TSS’ mission, to connect people, place, and nature through education, aligns closely with Wyoming Stargazing's commitment to scientific literacy and curiosity-driven learning. The two organizations had orbited each other's worlds for years.
The conversation that became a merger began quietly: a simple question about whether Wyoming Stargazing could park its vehicles in TSS's lot. That evolved to an office space request, and by late summer, TSS Executive Director Wayne Turner, with whom Singer had a long-standing relationship of mutual trust, asked directly: why not merge? "It was kind of a no-brainer, because the missions of Wyoming Stargazing and the Science Schools have been aligned since the very beginning," Singer said.
No-brainers still require execution, and the pace of the acquisition, from an initial parking conversation in the spring to a signed contract by October, was fast by any standard. Singer's TEAMS mentors proved indispensable throughout. They helped him understand what to look for, what questions to ask, and how to protect the interests of the organization he had built. One mentor, Alex Rienzie, proposed separating the Hello Earthlings concept from the merger agreement to preserve flexibility for future partnerships. "Even no-brainer mergers require care and thoughtful protections for each organization," Rienzie said. "We suggested separating some IP related to Hello Earthlings, which would afford more flexibility in production partnerships down the road." It was guidance Singer says he would not have known to seek on his own. The mentor team also helped him navigate the due diligence process as both boards weighed the decision, and a Gantt chart kept the process organized and ahead of schedule. At times, mentors had to push Singer to protect himself more rigorously. "Sam is naturally a very optimistic, trusting person," Gordon noted. "In some cases we had to nudge him to cover his bases and consider worst-case scenarios. That kind of protective counsel is exactly what a mentor team is for."
"The mentor team I had was the quintessential group to have during an acquisition," Singer said. "They helped me understand what I should be thinking about and looking for."
Since moving onto TSS's Coyote Canyon campus, Singer has experienced a profound professional transformation. Administrative responsibilities that consumed so much of his time, including bookkeeping, HR, marketing, and vehicle logistics, have been handed off to dedicated department heads within TSS's infrastructure. He now focuses almost entirely on programming and mission delivery. "Day to day now is way better. That is what I have been trying to do for the last decade," says Singer, who jokes that he is still getting used to having a boss. But there is an even deeper personal benefit for Singer: his two young daughters attend TSS, just 200 feet from his office. He now gets the opportunity to take his lunch break each day to read to his daughters and their friends.
"Everything I was getting from TEAMS, including a source of experience, time, and the opportunity to converse with other business leaders about what I was thinking, I'm now getting as part of my job at TSS," Singer reflected. "But what I got from TEAMS during those years was irreplaceable. It alleviated feeling isolated and lonely. That's the overall message I have to share."
About the TEAMS Mentor Program
TEAMS, Teton Entrepreneur And Mentor Services, is a group mentor model formed to accelerate the development of entrepreneurs in the Teton region and beyond, and further the mission of Silicon Couloir. TEAMS is powered by volunteer mentors who are excited by innovation, ideas, and problem-solving for ventures.
Learn more about TEAMS and how to apply: https://www.siliconcouloir.com/teams-mentoring
