Celebrating as One Big Happy Family: 5/10/14 - 5/18/14 - Page 31 - PassPorter - A Community of Walt Disney World, Disneyland, Disney Cruise Line, and General Travel Forums
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 The software our forums run on is just too out-of-date and it poses a significant security risk.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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I'm glad to see you posting again and that things are getting better. I know from experience it's a difficult time and if you ever want to grab drinks with a fellow Maryland PPer, just let me know! I'm in Southern Maryland, but travel up your way to see my mom quite often.
I was so happy to see an update from you. I was thinking about you the other day and how you were doing. I am sorry for the outcome but glad that you are adjusting and keeping strong.
I have been there also where the thought of picking up the camera was just daunting and made me even more tired. I am glad to hear that you are missing it which means you will pick it up soon. Try one nice afternoon going to a park with Hope and being in that peaceful place will help you get back in swing.
Thank you so much for thinking of me. Learning that people I've never really met, but that I know from these boards, have had me in their thoughts is so special. I definitely don't take that for granted.
I actually think I'm going to try and take some pictures on the next "warm" day we get here. See what I can make happen.
Quote:
Originally Posted by mommapants
Hi Melissa, glad to see you back. I too have been away for some time and just getting back into things. I was thinking "I wonder how Melissa is" when I left you were not in a good place. I'm sorry that things went the way they did but hopefully you can move on from everything and that you and Hope can have peace and happiness and a trip to Disney. I wish I had better advise or some words of wisdom but I don't so I'll just say I've been thinking about you and glad you are back and hope things get better.
Hey there! I've been thinking of you too. It's so hard to give people advice in these situations because each one is so different, but knowing good people are there makes it a little easier.
Quote:
Originally Posted by dsteiny23
Hello my friend!! I'm trying to get my lazy butt back on the boards too. I've missed everyone here and I'm so glad when I got back here that I see you're back as well.
We're all here for you! Dip your toes in and then wade in as slowly as you need to, or jump right in, either way we're here.
(Of course I'm a bit green, but happy you and Kelly might be able to make this work! )
Well, thankfully I can keep up with your lovely life through facebook & text. I wish you could meet up with me & Kelly too, but I can always hop in my car and drive my butt up to see you.
Quote:
Originally Posted by num1DVCfan
I'm glad to see you posting again and that things are getting better. I know from experience it's a difficult time and if you ever want to grab drinks with a fellow Maryland PPer, just let me know! I'm in Southern Maryland, but travel up your way to see my mom quite often.
Where in Southern Maryland? Drinks and a mini PPer meet always sounds like a good idea.
Very glad to see you planning a trip, and sending vibes that it all works out. Add me to the list of those wishing you well, and encouraging you with your lovely photography.
We're in St. Mary's County near Solomon's Island and Lexington Park.
You really are south! I don't think I've ever visited that part of the state before.
Quote:
Originally Posted by Thomhazel
I'm glad Disney(and Kelly) is giving you some light at the end of your tunnel and hope that you find some more reasons to smile as the months go on.
Thank you so much. As time goes by, I find more and more reasons to smile, but it always helps having good friends to help you when you're having trouble.
We've been in touch with Melissa and she's ok as of this morning. Her work is apparently about a block away from everything. She sent me a text over the weekend that said "Ferguson has come to Baltimore". I so feel for her, having been through it not that long ago. for everyone!
With the happenings going on in Baltimore - here is hoping you are safe.
Thank you so so much for checking in. It's absolutely insane right now. At least it's quiet at the moment, and hopefully it will stay that way, but it's been very scary. I actually came into work today, and I work about a block from where a lot of the riots started on Saturday night, but with the National Guard positioned all around us, I feel safe enough to be here. If I find out something's happening close by, or we're alerted about something, I will leave and head home ASAP.
I can honestly say that I've never felt the way I've felt over the last few days while I've watched them basically try to burn this city to the ground. I felt like I was watching something happening in another country, but it made me sick to my stomach knowing it was where my parents grew up and where I work. It's just so sad right now.
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We've been in touch with Melissa and she's ok as of this morning. Her work is apparently about a block away from everything. She sent me a text over the weekend that said "Ferguson has come to Baltimore". I so feel for her, having been through it not that long ago. for everyone!
Thanks Kelly! We must have posted at the same exact time. Great minds. It's nice, but in such a tragic way, knowing that I have someone I can go to who knows what it feels like. It's a sad thing to have in common though.
Thanks Kelly! We must have posted at the same exact time. Great minds. It's nice, but in such a tragic way, knowing that I have someone I can go to who knows what it feels like. It's a sad thing to have in common though.
It's definitely sad that we have to have this in common. I wish people would realize that burning down and looting the places in your own community are not the answer. Now people don't have places to shop or work - like I read - it's a domino effect.
Glad you're safe, and at least from what I've seen on CNN tonight, seems things are quieter. We lived through the riots in LA 22 years ago, and were literally trapped in our apartment for 3 days. With those, each night would just end up worse than the prior night. Nothing I'd ever want to experience again, and I'm so saddened every time I see something similar happening.
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I'm glad to see you posting again and that things are getting better. I know from experience it's a difficult time and if you ever want to grab drinks with a fellow Maryland PPer, just let me know! I'm in Southern Maryland, but travel up your way to see my mom quite often.
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Pixie Dust
I'm trying to get my lazy butt back on the boards too. I've missed everyone here and I'm so glad when I got back here that I see you're back as well. 
)
Holly: 
Disney Magic - Oct 2015
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