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 The software our forums run on is just too out-of-date and it poses a significant security risk.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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MouseFest is the monster that grew so large, it consumed itself.
I think that's the problem, right there. It's a huge undertaking, and for no pay, no one with enough "star power" is likely to take the job.
I think various members of on-line communities will continue to gather at that time, but I don't think it'll ever reach the 800-pound gorilla stage it did back in 2008.
I don't think they are looking at all to revive it as there have been extremely qualified people who have volunteered already with no return interest from the organization.
i agree, eileen. it was VERY confusing for me that year...i didn't "get it" about all the meets and could not figure out why i was not seeing PP's at all the meets. it was like each little community was doing their own thing. now DoD...THAT was fun...
Anyway, it seems like most here are going to F&W this year and not to the reunion weekend or whatever everyone chooses to call it.
I don't think they are looking at all to revive it as there have been extremely qualified people who have volunteered already with no return interest from the organization.
As the planners of the event for several years with TONS of success, I think the Mousefest executive committee are the most knowledgeable on who would be qualified to run such a HUGE event. I'm sure they have given every interested person just consideration, but filling Dave Marx's shoes is not an easy task
i think it is more than just Dave working on it....i know he did a bang up job,,,,and i also know it was one of monumental proportions. when i originally posted this, i was thinking more in terms of just a passporter mousefest...a xmas extravaganza with peeps from just passporter. the whole huge commercial mousefest thing was very befuddling to me the first time....i can see how it got so out of hand and out of control. shame, though, that "we" can't have a xmas gathering. in my little mind i was envisioning something like DoD only at xmas. think THAT will ever happen?
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To date, I haven't heard anything from Jenn or Dave about planning for a December Gathering and I've been PassPorter's December Gathering/MouseFest Events Coordinator for several years now. Interest in a large gathering began to dwindle as soon as MouseFest was canceled last year. With a quarter of the people (maybe) from the boards who attended previously possibly being interested, it just doesn't make sense at this time to donate a lot of time and resources to a Gathering of our own for the handful of people still interested.
HOWEVER , members are encouraged to plan their own meets at any time of year, so there's no reason not to put together a group trip with your friends from the message boards and start a new thread for each meet in The Backyard Forum. THAT is what I would do if you're interested in meeting with other PassPorters in December.
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To date, I haven't heard anything from Jenn or Dave about planning for a December Gathering and I've been PassPorter's December Gathering/MouseFest Events Coordinator for several years now. Interest in a large gathering began to dwindle as soon as MouseFest was canceled last year. With a quarter of the people (maybe) from the boards who attended previously possibly being interested, it just doesn't make sense at this time to donate a lot of time and resources to a Gathering of our own for the handful of people still interested.
HOWEVER , members are encouraged to plan their own meets at any time of year, so there's no reason not to put together a group trip with your friends from the message boards and start a new thread for each meet in The Backyard Forum. THAT is what I would do if you're interested in meeting with other PassPorters in December.
Interest has increased substantially this year I know you have never attended a MouseFest event but there are many, many PPers attending various events this December and most of us are very excited to see one another again! It's going to be a fun time and hopefully you can join us as well!
As neither Jennifer nor Dave have indicated to me that they will have the time or resources to put into an official PassPorter Gathering this year, my suggestion is for members to plan their own meets in The Backyard Forum for now - as you would if you went during any other time of year when Jenn, Dave, and the Guides may or may not be there to host events. It is possible that given enough interest, that could change. Perhaps in time for a 2011 Gathering?
It appears the original poster's question has been answered and it's much too late to plan an event of the size of MouseFest or the Annual December Gathering for this December at this point, so I'm going to close this thread/topic and refer everyone to The Backyard Forum for December meet planning. Please keep an eye out in the coming months for details of a possible 2011 PassPorter Gathering.
We're not planning an organized, official PassPorter gathering in December simply because it takes huge time/effort/financial commitments and, if we're spending so much, it should probably be on research and new books instead. BUT ... if it turns out enough PassPorter readers are at the parks during that time, we might still schedule a short trip so we can join you -- we love to hang out with you. The difference is that we're participating, rather than organizing. This is what I did last December -- Alexander and I came down for four days, did as many PassPorter events as we could, and we had a great time.
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, members are encouraged to plan their own meets at any time of year, so there's no reason not to put together a group trip with your friends from the message boards and start a new thread for each meet in The Backyard Forum. 
THAT is what I would do if you're interested in meeting with other PassPorters in December.
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