Press Release: Astronauts4Hire Granted 501(c)(3) Nonprofit Status

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

September 12, 2011

Astronauts4Hire Granted 501(c)(3) Nonprofit Status

Tampa, Florida – Astronauts4Hire is proud to announce it is now officially a public charity with tax-exempt status under Section 501(c)(3) of the United States Internal Revenue Code. Contributions donated to Astronauts4Hire are fully tax-deductible retroactive to the founding of the organization on April 12, 2010. Astronauts4Hire is also now eligible to apply for government and foundation grants, which will further broaden its access to resources and strengthen its ability to serve the commercial spaceflight industry.

"Obtaining 501(c)(3) status is a major milestone for Astronauts4Hire," remarked President and Co-founder Brian Shiro. "This opens many doors for us to expand fundraising activities and fully realize our goals as a charitable educational organization facilitating the training and professional development needs of astronaut candidates. In doing so, we will create a new generation of astronauts prepared for the era of commercial spaceflight, advance space research, raise awareness of space exploration benefits, and inspire youth to pursue careers in science and technology."

Supporting its educational mission, Astronauts4Hire has developed a comprehensive training curriculum to prepare its members for the rigors of spaceflight. Members training through the Astronauts4Hire organization enjoy cost savings compared with undergoing equivalent training programs independently. They can also gain important operational experience as contract researchers carrying out experiments or operating payloads for clients on microgravity and suborbital flights. Representative areas of expertise in the Astronauts4Hire organization span medicine, biology, chemistry, physics, geology, remote sensing, astronomy, and most fields of engineering.

The Astronauts4Hire Tax Identification Number (EID) is 27-2360828. The IRS letter granting Astronauts4Hire its 501(c)(3) tax-exempt status is available upon request. Donation inquiries can be sent to donate[at]astronauts4hire.org.

About Astronauts4Hire:
Astronauts for Hire, Inc. (A4H) is a 501(c)(3) non-profit corporation whose objectives are to provide opportunities for students and professionals to develop and refine the skills necessary to become commercial astronauts and to assist these qualified candidates with networking opportunities in the space research community. A4H's commercial astronaut candidates are accomplished scientists and engineers who can support a wide variety of payloads. They are available today for contract and consulting work with researchers to design and conduct experiments on microgravity, suborbital, and orbital missions. For more information, please visit www.Astronauts4Hire.org or contact Public Relations Officer Ben Corbin at media[at]astronauts4hire.org or at (850) 685-2218.


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Interested parties can download and distribute the press release as a MS Word or Adobe PDF document.

Location: Tampa, FL, USA

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