Holy shit, my worst nightmare is realized. I LOVE RethinkDB, I use it for EVERYTHING. It has everything I've ever wanted in a database. Relational documents, realtime feeds. Sadness. Someone better be picking up from where they left off.
You can pick it up where they left it off. It may sound cold and hostile but often open source projects fail because consumers cant become contributers. Perhaps finding a way to fund it like bounty source is a good path foreard
You're right, I can't become a contributor. I don't have the time, nor anywhere near the skill set to build a relational database.
You can build the skills, though I respect you may not have the time.
It really is the best DB I've ever used. Would love to support the project with donations if that were possible.