Greetings folks,

Some of you may have seen mention in the Linking Ring of the fabulous work Tom Verner, his wife and recently a couple of other magicians are doing with Magician
Without Borders. I feel this is truly incredible, much needed work, which many aren't aware of. This is a truly worthy cause which could use more support (time, treasure and/or talent) from our community. Following please find some backround info Tom sent me... Best wishes, Bob McEntee

Magicians Without Borders
100 Geary Road
Bristol, Vermont 05443
http://www.magicianswithoutborders.org


Magicians Without Borders is a nonprofit 501(c)3 organization that
brings love, laughter, and magic to refugee and orphan children living in
many of the most war-torn, difficult places in the world. These children live in
isolated places that are difficult to get to. The children feel forgotten by the world and loose hope after years and years waiting in a refugee camp or orphanage.
More often than not, we find that we are the only entertainment that has ever
Come to visit them. They are thrilled and delighted.

This means so much to them. Our visit means that the world knows
where they are and they have not been forgotten. We bring not only laughter
and magic, but hope that their suffering will end and they will someday go home.

Some of the places we have traveled:

Burma and Thailand after the Tsunami; Bangladesh, India and Haiti;
Sudan and Somalia; Macedonia, Kosovo, Serbia, Bosnia, Croatia; Louisiana,
Mississippi, and Alabama after Hurricanes Katrina and Rita. We also go to
El Salvador every three months where we perform in the isolated villages and
where we are teaching a group of teenagers in Santa Ana magic and theater skills.
Until recently, these children were living in a large garbage dump outside the city of Santa Ana. They have been rescued by a Salvadoran doctor who created a program
for them, The Barefoot Angels.

They are now in school and living relatively healthy and safe lives. The children are becoming good little magicians and have begun to perform around El Salvador in orphanages, hospitals and the sites of natural disasters, such as a recent volcano eruption that destroyed the homes of 1500 families - two of these children, Pedro and Alajandra, traveled for two days entertaining the homeless children living in makeshift huts.
Teaching magic to Barefoot Angels in Santa Ana, El Salvador

In the last four years, we have visited and performed for 150,000 children. We often go under the auspices of a non-governmental organization, such as the UN, World Vision, International Rescue Committee, International Red Cross and Crescent. These organizations often invite us to bring some laughter and magic to their children. They do not pay us but sometimes provide us with transportation (once we are in the country) and help us organize our trips.

In the case of refugee camps, the UNHCR (UN High Commission for Refugees)
gives us security clearance to get into the camps and transportation to these often far away, isolated refugee settlements (one day we drove ten hours along a rutted road to get to the Demme Refugee camp on the Ethiopian-Sudan border. The UN has written several articles on our work, some of which are posted on our web site.

We are solely supported by individual donations. We do not yet receive Foundation support. The money we raise goes completely to support the work. At the moment we take no salaries for the work we are doing. We do about six trips a year, each trip averaging three weeks. The money we raise is used to buy plane tickets, visas, inoculations, accommodations and food. All donations are used to bring love, laughter and magic to many of the most forgotten refugee and orphan children in the world.

How does one become a part of Magicians without Borders? I haved lived and worked in Central America and am fluent in Spanish and really like the idea of bringing a smile to the faces of hurting people anywhere in the world.

The website in Robert McEntee's above message has a mailing address and an email address for "Magic without Borders". I suggest you try contacting them directly.

You can email Tom Verner at verner@gmavt.net or contact him through the site as Bill suggested above. There are many ways to help even if you can't travel overseas. In my spare time I'm posting the press release around the web, etc. and hopefully raise neeeded funds and support for this great work.

Aside from the obvious human benefits, this work can also have a huge positive effect for magic in general. Most people now think of magic as Criss Angel pulling needles from his belly button or a David Blaine stunt. So this can be much more meaningful publicity, but unfortunately good news seems to travel slow, so most magicians, let alone the public, aren't familar with it. Any assistance in spreading the word would be helpful!