Conference 2002 Report

What a Conference!  That was the general thought after the 4th Annual S.M.I.L.E. Conference on November 22 to 24, 2002 in Phoenix, Arizona.

 About the Conference

The Conference started out with excitement as the dynamic trio of Pam "Sparky" Moody, Mary "Coco Nut" Farnworth, and Patty "Patty O'Patches" Meagher presented a school assembly show at the Thomas J. Pappas school for homeless children.  Although their sound crew left a lot to be desired, they put on a great show for everyone.

Left to right: Coco Nut, Sparky and Patty O'Patches take a bow at the Thomas J Pappus Elementary school.

After we returned to our base at the APS Headquarters at the Arizona Center, we saw a lecture on magic by legendary children's magician David Ginn.     

Above: David puts "Marko the Magnificent" in his costume!

David's lecture was followed by a tremendous lecture on clown movement by Lead Instructor Jeff McMullen.

Above: Jeff McMullen gets everyone on their feet to learn about Clown Movement.

During the Annual S.M.I.L.E. meeting, the Presidential Awards and the Billy Awards were presented.  The Presidential Awards were President Mark Ruffennach acknowledging those who gave superior contribution to the S.M.I.L.E. Organization.  This included Patty Meagher for her work on the conference, Scott Reed for his contributions to performing and writing his routines so everyone can share, Terry Ricketts for his continued help and support, and Bruce Wall for his work on the newsletter, e-news and website.  

The Billy Awards recognize outstanding articles written in the "Put A S.M.I.L.E. On Your Face" newsletter and were voted by the members of the S.M.I.L.E. Organization.  The winners were:

Above: The three winners of the 2002 Billy Awards 

From left to right: Bruce Wall, Scott Reed & Mark Ruffennach.

The elections were held next.  To see a complete listing of the 2003 & 2004 S.M.I.L.E. Board of Directors, go to the NEWS page.  The following new positions were added: Director of Historical Hysteria, Director of Magical Motivations and the Canadian Regional Director.

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SATURDAY, NOVEMBER 23

The day began with a special warm up by Jeff McMullen.  Then we saw a lecture from David Ginn on how to add messages to magic.  That was followed by a class by Jeff & Justin Ricketts on prop building and then Jeff & Terry Ricketts team teaching the Magical Mayhem hands on class.  Some people attended a beginner's makeup class.

Later in the afternoon we got into makeup and costume and then it was picture time!

SUNDAY, NOVEMBER 24

The final day of the Conference is sad but we've got too much good stuff to do before the day is through!

We started with "Under the Big Top" which is members chance to perform for the group.  

After "Under the Big Top" we did a "Three Ring Safety Circus" of balloon twisting, puppets and juggling.  Everyone had a final crack at the dealers tables and then we went to do the graduation.  This graduation ceremony was "cheeky" to say the least!  At the end, President Ruffennach thanked everyone for coming, thanked the Instructors for their hard work, and thanked Conference Chair Patty Meagher for all that she did to make this conference possible!

Above: Our fabulous lead instructors!

Left to Right: David Ginn, Jeff McMullen & Terry Ricketts

Check out these other Conference reports:

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Last modified: August 15, 2008.