On September 7th, 2001 the Magic Café appeared on line and well the rest is history.

What many do not realize is the months of preparation that went into getting everything right so it could unfold itself the way that I had envisoned it should be.

Though the concept and such of our little online community is my baby, I could not have made this happen without my dear friends Gene and Mary - they are the technical minds, consultants and all around get it done folks behind the scenes of our little online community.



Through I have never met either of them in person, thru thick and thin they have always been there for not only myself but the entire Magic Café community. Pretty amazing when you consider neither of them know anything about magic and nor do they really have an interest other than watching the occasional magic trick on television.

When servers crashed, they were there. Hackers being hackers - again, they were there. Re-writing scripts and codes to make the community function better - yep, Gene and Mary were there too. When we experienced crashes and missing data I've seen Gene stay up for days without sleep to resolve the issue - and he has always come thru one way or the other.

Our recent move to bigger servers and faster processers was another Gene project. He worked and worked so the Search Engine could be used to its full attention once again. Did you know Gene designed the search engine with magicians in mind?

Yep, what began as a small idea I had while sitting in Denny's one night and sketching ideas on a paper napkin has turned into the largest magic community in the world.

None of this would have been possible without the hard work and determination of these two special people. They are also my friends. More to the point, I consider them family. Words could never convey my appreciation and respect for everything the two of them do on a daily basis.

Having said all of that, I come to you, our Magic Café community because these two angels need your help right now. Due to a series of unforseen circumstances including a serious death in the family and loss of family income these two people are in trouble.

Both live in Michigan near the great lakes and this winter has been a harsh one. Between utlity bills, the family death and other expenses Gene and Mary are having serious financial issues.

I'm not sure if you are aware of this, but whenever somone makes a donation to the Magic Café, the funds go straight to Gene and Mary, it has always been set-up that way. Its the least that we can do for them.

Well folks, they could really use your help now - seriously.

I realize that everyone is struggling these days paying their house payments, rent, etc but I also know magicians also purchase those things that really matter to them.

So take a moment and make a donation to two people who have been instrumental in not only building this community but keeping it running smoothly twenty four seven. Any amount helps and is very much appreciated.

I have made my donation and ask that you do the same.

Yes, I want to help Gene and Mary! Click Here!

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Mary and I want to thank all of you who have donated so far, and would like to thank those who may send a donation in the future as well. It really means a lot to us, not only that it's helping our situation, but that it is coming from this community - the members of The Magic Café.

As Steve wrote, Mary and I have been here since the beginning, and it means a great deal to me personally. You could say I cut my coding teeth right here with the Café. I basically went from modifying (known as "hacking" at the time) existing scripts to creating fully functioning forum apps starting with blank pages. The search engine and PM system in use here were both created from scratch. There are many other things that have been added over the years, both visible and non-visible. Steve wrote that this is his baby, but I consider myself its Godfather, more or less.

Again, Mary and I send thanks to all. We appreciate it more than you could possibly know.

Gene