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 The software our forums run on is just too out-of-date and it poses a significant security risk.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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Yes, I saw it earlier on another site.
It's a very sweet story. The Jedi Master in the picture actually was told about it by someone and posted a reply.
I can't link it from the blog comments, so here's the Jedi Master's response,
"David Piggott
June 14, 2013 at 5:51 pm
Hi Sharon, this is your friend the jedi master. I just wanted to let you know that I got your beautiful thank you message. I’ve read it quite a few times and I am so moved by who you are and how you have shared this with the world.
I vividly remember you and Josiah and your daughter, and on behalf of everyone at the jedi training academy, thank you for your sincere and heart felt appreciation.
This story has literally gone viral like you wouldn’t believe, even to the jedi order on the west coast and around the world!
You need to see what people have written, it’s beautiful, full of love and warms my heart. Add me on Facebook, it will surprise you!
I am most moved by who you are. A loving mother who will do anything to make sure her son experiences everything that life has to offer. Your commitment and sacrifice every single day is what makes the real difference.
You have opened people’s eyes to what it is like to have a child with autism and that even the smallest gesture can completely alter somone’s experience of life.
The ripple effect of love and compassion that you have caused is unmeasurable and just sharing this has altered people’s days, made them smile, made them cry and reminded them what it’s like to be a loving human being.
Thank you Sharon, inspired, moved and humbled…
David Piggott
P.s. If Josiah wants a rematch with Darth Vader, we would be more than glad to accommodate that! Please let me know"
Thank you so much for sharing that - that was really sweet of the CM to do what he did. I can totally relate to what she goes through as Abby is Autistic and she can be the same way - so fixated on something that if it doesn't happen, she has a meltdown. Luckily though, as Abby has gotten older, she's more "agreeable" to going with the flow and if something doesn't happen, she can cope better with it. She still has a meltdown here and there when something doesn't happen and it is so tough to get her out of it when it happens.
Thank you, Sue, for sharing the reply! I have read the original blog story and I was having a very hard time reading through the tears by the end. I am glad that the Jedi Master was able to respond and extend the magic some more.
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This and many others like this are the reasons we have found Disney to be such a wonderful place to take our children (both on the spectrum). What a fantastic story!
That is so sweet! I will say that I noticed how wonderful the characters were with my son, who shows physical tics that go along with his Tourette's. They didn't pause and just took it in stride. This is why we go.
I read this on Facebook and was in tears (and reposted it). As Amy said - this is why we go. It brought back our character meal at Hollywood and Vine. Cullen was just about to throw a fit when Oso and Handy Manny noticed his furious signing (he wanted more Rice Milk and I was out). They got down on his eye level, started to sign and engaged my little boy in a way I hadn't been able to.
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The Fun, Old-Fashioned Family Vacation, 3.0 http://www.passporterboards.com/foru...ml#post4472933
Ch-Ch-Changes July 2015
[URL="http://www.passporterboards.com/forums/sharing-adventure-disney-world-trip-reports/288847-ch-ch-changes-ptr-july-16-24-a.html"]
I read this on Facebook and was in tears (and reposted it). As Amy said - this is why we go. It brought back our character meal at Hollywood and Vine. Cullen was just about to throw a fit when Oso and Handy Manny noticed his furious signing (he wanted more Rice Milk and I was out). They got down on his eye level, started to sign and engaged my little boy in a way I hadn't been able to.
OMG where are my tissues! It warms my heart to read this story and the response from the Jedi Master. It also brings me joy to hear the experiences of others who've posted about their character interactions.
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