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Help Saman Shikhbahaei rebuild XLRC
Since 2006 Sam has been huge apart of the Petaluma community. He has changed lives with his store. He is a kind soul that loves to help and teach others. He especially misses teaching flying lessons with RC airplanes, helicopters, and drones. He is a jack of all trades and a self taught/made man.
In a nutshell.
Sam was born in Iran in 1979 weeks before the regime takeover and two months before the Iran hostage crisis. Then endeavored seven years of war before his family fled to Germany as refugees. Then spent a little over three years in Germany in a refugee camp where he first fell in love with RCs. At seven years old he built his first bike out of spare parts that were in the garbage at the refugee camp, which was too big for his small body to ride properly. His parents not having oversight of him due to the harsh refugee environment, he would ride that bike across Munich just to look through the window of a RC shop. He would memorize the images through the window, just so he could go back to the cold unforgiving refugee camp and play with them in his mind. Two months after his tenth birthday he experienced the Berlin Wall coming down and the intense circumstances that came with it. In 1990 his family finally was granted political asylum to the USA. Where he ended up in Denton, Tx at his Aunts house. By coincidence two blocks away from a RC airplane flying club, where he would sit day after day and watch these men fly old war birds. Fast forward to 2006. Sam got tired of being disrespected as a glassblower by the local glass shops so he opened his own hand blown glass shop(XL Glass). Which became the most popular glass shop in Sonoma County. After he moved the store and expanded, he had a few empty display cases where he decided to put some RC cars which he would buy and sell on craigslist. Before he knew it the interest became overwhelming so he decided to go to L.A. to a RC convention to personally met, shake hands, and start accounts with all the major RC companies for lithium batteries, RC cars, RC boats, RC airplanes, RC gliders, and RC jets. When he returned he split the glass shop in two and started XLRC. Within nine months he was knee deep in RCs and the community of families and kids took his heart. He loves the US and the community he has founded here, it means everything to him.
He has been in depression since the split from his wife almost two years ago and has lost just about everything. But still has paid and barely kept up with rent for his store and glass blowing studio/warehouse. For the hope of reopening. He has been working on getting his mind, body, and spirit right (which includes quitting alcohol) not only for himself but also for his community. He has been working on building the store again but without capital he keeps having to shut his doors. Its become a sad cycle. All he wants is to get back to doing what he loves. To bring joy to families, to give them something to strengthen the family bonds, to bring knowledge to kids that will stay with them for life, to help parents get their kids off the internet and outside, and to build back the community of RC enthusiast.
I have listened to his plans for over a year. He has a plot of land from the City of Petaluma Parks and Rec to build a RC track on, so families and individuals can meet up and enjoy the love of tiny cars. Bring back his famous XL Sunday Meets and events which includes kid days where he teaches kids how to fix cars, shoot rockets, have races, etc.
Let’s give him a gift and get his life back on track.
We can help him on his way to his goals. He is systematic and has blocked out money goals that he needs to be successful from inventory to advertisement and local endeavors. I have seen his books and know he purely needs capital. Here is a breakdown from what I have gathered from looking through his books. As well as being very close to him for the last 19 months.
$15,000 he can fully restock the store
$21,000 restock, give him a cushion, build the track
$25,000 above plus start a program for low income families
$30,000 above plus build his invention to clean the coastlines
$80,000 above plus reopen his glassblowing school
$90,000+ who knows what he can do with that
Anything you can donate will help him on his path. Help him rebuild himself as the business man and pubic figure he once was. I know that he will cry for every dollar donated and be grateful for everyone just reading and/or sharing this fundraiser.
I encourage everyone to look at XLRC Petaluma reviews on facebook and Yelp.
Since 2006 Sam has been huge apart of the Petaluma community. He has changed lives with his store. He is a kind soul that loves to help and teach others. He especially misses teaching flying lessons with RC airplanes, helicopters, and drones. He is a jack of all trades and a self taught/made man.
In a nutshell.
Sam was born in Iran in 1979 weeks before the regime takeover and two months before the Iran hostage crisis. Then endeavored seven years of war before his family fled to Germany as refugees. Then spent a little over three years in Germany in a refugee camp where he first fell in love with RCs. At seven years old he built his first bike out of spare parts that were in the garbage at the refugee camp, which was too big for his small body to ride properly. His parents not having oversight of him due to the harsh refugee environment, he would ride that bike across Munich just to look through the window of a RC shop. He would memorize the images through the window, just so he could go back to the cold unforgiving refugee camp and play with them in his mind. Two months after his tenth birthday he experienced the Berlin Wall coming down and the intense circumstances that came with it. In 1990 his family finally was granted political asylum to the USA. Where he ended up in Denton, Tx at his Aunts house. By coincidence two blocks away from a RC airplane flying club, where he would sit day after day and watch these men fly old war birds. Fast forward to 2006. Sam got tired of being disrespected as a glassblower by the local glass shops so he opened his own hand blown glass shop(XL Glass). Which became the most popular glass shop in Sonoma County. After he moved the store and expanded, he had a few empty display cases where he decided to put some RC cars which he would buy and sell on craigslist. Before he knew it the interest became overwhelming so he decided to go to L.A. to a RC convention to personally met, shake hands, and start accounts with all the major RC companies for lithium batteries, RC cars, RC boats, RC airplanes, RC gliders, and RC jets. When he returned he split the glass shop in two and started XLRC. Within nine months he was knee deep in RCs and the community of families and kids took his heart. He loves the US and the community he has founded here, it means everything to him.
He has been in depression since the split from his wife almost two years ago and has lost just about everything. But still has paid and barely kept up with rent for his store and glass blowing studio/warehouse. For the hope of reopening. He has been working on getting his mind, body, and spirit right (which includes quitting alcohol) not only for himself but also for his community. He has been working on building the store again but without capital he keeps having to shut his doors. Its become a sad cycle. All he wants is to get back to doing what he loves. To bring joy to families, to give them something to strengthen the family bonds, to bring knowledge to kids that will stay with them for life, to help parents get their kids off the internet and outside, and to build back the community of RC enthusiast.
I have listened to his plans for over a year. He has a plot of land from the City of Petaluma Parks and Rec to build a RC track on, so families and individuals can meet up and enjoy the love of tiny cars. Bring back his famous XL Sunday Meets and events which includes kid days where he teaches kids how to fix cars, shoot rockets, have races, etc.
Let’s give him a gift and get his life back on track.
We can help him on his way to his goals. He is systematic and has blocked out money goals that he needs to be successful from inventory to advertisement and local endeavors. I have seen his books and know he purely needs capital. Here is a breakdown from what I have gathered from looking through his books. As well as being very close to him for the last 19 months.
$15,000 he can fully restock the store
$21,000 restock, give him a cushion, build the track
$25,000 above plus start a program for low income families
$30,000 above plus build his invention to clean the coastlines
$80,000 above plus reopen his glassblowing school
$90,000+ who knows what he can do with that
Anything you can donate will help him on his path. Help him rebuild himself as the business man and pubic figure he once was. I know that he will cry for every dollar donated and be grateful for everyone just reading and/or sharing this fundraiser.
I encourage everyone to look at XLRC Petaluma reviews on facebook and Yelp.