As of January 1, 2019, we have closed our forums. This is a decision we did not come to lightly, but it is necessary. The software our forums run on is just too out-of-date and it poses a significant security risk. The server software itself must be updated, and it cannot be without removing the forums.
So it is with a heavy heart that we say goodbye to our long-running forums. They came online in 2000 and brought together so many wonderful Disney fans. We had friendships form, careers launch, couples marry, children born ... all because of this amazing community.
Thank you to each of you who were a part of this community. You made it possible.
And a very special thank you to our Guides (moderators), past and present, who kept our forums a happy place to be. You are the glue that held everything together, and we are forever grateful to you. Thank you aliceinwdw, Caldercup, MrsM, WillCAD, Fortissimo, GingerJ, HiddenMickey, CRCrazy, Eeyoresmom, disneyknut, disneydani, Cam22, chezp, WDWfan, Luvsun, KMB733, rescuesk, OhToodles!, Colexis Mom, lfredsbo, HiddenMickey, DrDolphin, DopeyGirl, duck addict, Disneybine, PixieMichele, Sandra Bostwick, Eeyore Tattoo, DyanKJ130, Suzy Q'Disney, LilMarcieMouse, AllisonG, Belle*, Chrissi, Brant, DawnDenise, Crystalloubear, Disneymom9092, FanOfMickey, Goofy4Goofy, GoofyMom, Home4us123, iamgrumpy, ilovedisney247, Jennifer2003, Jenny Pooh, KrisLuvsDisney, Ladyt, Laughaholic88, LauraBelle Hime, Lilianna, LizardCop, Loobyoxlip, lukeandbrooksmom, marisag, michnash, MickeyMAC, OffKilter_Lynn, PamelaK, Poor_Eeyore, ripkensnana, RobDVC, SHEANA1226, Shell of the South, snoozin, Statelady01, Tara O'Hara, tigger22, Tink and Co., Tinkerbelz, WDWJAMBA, wdwlovers, Wendyismyname, whoSEZ, WildforWD, and WvuGrrrl. You made the magic.
We want to personally thank Sara Varney, who coordinated our community for many years (among so many other things she did for us), and Cheryl Pendry, our Message Board Manager who helped train our Guides, and Ginger Jabour, who helped us with the PassPorter-specific forums and Live! Guides. Thank you for your time, energy, and enthusiasm. You made it all happen.
There are other changes as well.
Why? Well, the world has changed. And change with it, we must. The lyrics to "We Go On" for IllumiNations say it best:
We go on to the joy and through the tears
We go on to discover new frontiers
Moving on with the current of the years.
We go on
Moving forward now as one
Moving on with a spirit born to run
Ever on with each rising sun.
To a new day, we go on.
It's time to move on and move forward.
PassPorter is a small business, and for many years it supported our family. But the world changed, print books took a backseat to the Internet, and for a long time now it has been unable to make ends meet. We've had to find new ways to support our family, which means new careers and less and less time available to devote to our first baby, PassPorter.
But eventually, we must move on and move forward. It is the right thing to do.
So we are retiring this newsletter, as we simply cannot keep up with it. Many thanks to Mouse Fan Travel who supported it all these years, to All Ears and MousePlanet who helped us with news, to our many article contributors, and -- most importantly -- to Sara Varney who edited our newsletter so wonderfully for years and years.
And we are no longer charging for the Live Guides. If you have a subscription, it's yours to keep for the lifetime of the Live Guides at no additional cost. The Live Guides will stay online, barring server issues and technical problems, for all of 2019.
That said, PassPorter is not going away. Most of the resources will remain online for as long as we can support them, and after that we will find ways to make whatever we can available. PassPorter means a great deal to us, and to many of you, and we will do our best to keep it alive in whatever way we can. Our server costs are high, and they'll need to come out of our pockets, so in the future you can expect some changes so we can bring those costs down.
Thank you, thank you, thank you for your amazing support over the years. Without you, there's no way us little guys could have made something like this happen and given the "big guys" a run for their money. PassPorter was consistently the #3 guidebook after the Unofficial and Official guides, which was really unheard of for such a small company to do. We ROCKED it thanks to you and your support and love!
If you miss us, you can still find some of us online. Sara started a new blog at DisneyParkPrincess.com -- I strongly urge you to visit and get on her mailing list. She IS the Disney park princess and knows Disney backward and forward. And I am blogging as well at JenniferMaker.com, which is a little craft blog I started a couple of years ago to make ends meet. You can see and hear me in my craft show at https://www.youtube.com/c/jennifermaker . Many PassPorter readers and fans are on Facebook, in groups they formed like the PassPorter Trip Reports and PassPorter Crafting Challenge (if you join, just let them know you read about it in the newsletter). And some of our most devoted community members started a forum of their own at Pixie Dust Lane and all are invited over.
So we encourage you to stay in touch with us and your fellow community members wherever works best for you!
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Okay, Grace is now 18, graduating from high school in May, and is not going to senior beach week in Maryland. She's going to..........
Disney World. June 1 -5, four nights.
With two, possibly three BFF's. Unchaperoned. They are all going off to college in August. It's a total package deal, meals, CBR, MYW tickets, ME. No driving necessary, but still, a mom worries.
Please tell me it's okay to let her go without me and that they will be safe!
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It'll be fine! My DD (19) just got back from a 5 day trip to NYC with a friend. They encountered everything from their flight being cancelled due to a storm, to their hostel being evacuated by the NYFD! "Kids" are a lot more resourceful than you think, and although I did worry a bit, I had faith that she would be ok. And she was. She came home more mature than when she left and she has an awesome story to tell her grandkids some day...
DD went to Disney for spring break with her best friend her senior year in HS. They survived a couple of hitches, including the fact that DD was still 17 and technically could not sign for things on her own.
They stayed as DVC members at the SSR and flew down stand-by as her friend's father is a pilot. That was the worst part for me, not knowing if she would get on a flight and which flight she would end up flying home on. The other problem is my DD is now a huge SSR fan and it's her preferred accommodation.
I'm sure your DD will do fine. It's also good practice for her to be truly independent before heading off to school.
Howevah - at 18, I went down the shore with my 23 year old boyfriend the summer after I graduated (to Wildwood which I know inside out) and my parents didn't so much as bat an eyelash when I told them. 'Course, I was working three jobs at te time and worked my tail off to get the time off from all three at once, so I think I proved my maturity long before the trip.
Reasonable caution is all they'll need as long as they stick together.
I too am the mother of a dd and although mine is no where near old enough as mine starts high school next year I could see me letting her go down to WDW for senior week. Especially since I know what happens at the shore for senior week. I'd rather my dd be in WDW with girlfriends that at the shore with drunk boys. My only problem would be that I would be jealous that I wasn't there too.
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I would rather my child go to WDW than the Bahamas (which I did when I was 17). You know they'll be in a more secure place, restricted access to alcohol (holy cow, the Bahamas was one drunk fest and I was 17). My parents sure did trust me enough to go there without chaperones (was not a school sponsored trip - one teacher organized it on his own). I made it back and made conscious decisions not to overindulge like some of the kids did. Your DD will be fine!!!!