Our Wounded Warriors, and What You Can Do

I'll be at Walter Reed Army Medical Center this Saturday, July 16, from Noon-2 p.m. doing magic for families of our wounded warriors. In the past year, I had two more extraordinary privileges. The first was performing at the White House Halloween Party for the Obama family and 300 invited military families. The second was in December, performing at the Army Surgeon General's Holiday Banquet for the Army Medical Command leaders and the Sergeant Major of the Army.

I LOVE doing military events because it's like working for my family. As a child of two Naval officers, and with four generations of Navy in my family, this is a cause near and dear to my heart. I flew before I could walk. We moved from base to base, making new friends along the way. I know what it's like being in a military family, although thank God I never had to deal with a parent killed or wounded in the line.

So why am I telling you all this? It's because the needs are acute right now, and you can help.

Saturday's event is sponsored by Operation Homefront, a 501(c)(3) nonprofit volunteer organization that provides emergency financial and other assistance to the families of our service members and wounded warriors. By clicking here, you can find out what items and skills are currently needed to assist military families in the DC metro area. Here's the unusual thing - they mostly don't want your money. They need skilled tradesman to repair houses and cars, donations of vehicles, gift cards, supplies for care packages, party supplies for Saturday and so forth. Even in this tough economic time, that's probably not beyond your reach.

You can also visit servicemen and women - those who are here in DC may still be far away from loved ones. You can donate, and you can volunteer.


A word of advice: if you plan on visiting our troops at Walter Reed or anywhere else, don't plan on doing anything else the rest of the day. You'll be an emotional wreck. Seeing the courage, optimism, vision and faith of these amazing men and women will hit you hard. In the gut. And you'll never be the same.

Comedy & Mystery Society Show in Gaithersburg!

I'll be at the Gaithersburg Arts Barn TONIGHT, May 28, at 8:00 p.m. in the Comedy & Mystery Society show, alongside Brian Curry and Mark Phillips. We'll also have more magicians doing Close-up magic during the intermission! That's a crazy amount of LIVE entertainment for only $12-$15! The show is appropriate for adults and children age 10+

May 28, 2011
Comedy & Magic Society
Astounding magic and sleight of hand with interactive theatre and hilarious fun!.

Saturday at 8 p.m.
$15 Nonresidents / $12 City of Gaithersburg Residents
For tickets call 301-258-6394 or visit RecXpress online at recxpress.gaithersburgmd.gov

311 Kent Square Rd
Gaithersburg, Md 20878
Map & Directions

Let It Snow!

This is a true story. It happened on December 6 of last year.

There is a show I do every year, a holiday party for military families. It takes place in a secure facility within a secure facility - it almost takes longer to get inside than to do the show! But once you're inside, you're in a fairy land of Christmas trees, lights, garlands and cotton "snow." Hundreds of children play games, color, eat popcorn and watch Christmas movies. There are face painters, balloon artists, clowns, costumed characters and elves - mostly volunteers. All this in
what is normally a loading dock.

Around 10:00 am, Santa arrives on a huge fire engine and holds court in the lobby. This is, by far, the most efficient Santa line I've ever seen. Every child gets plenty of time with the Big Guy, yet somehow the line keeps moving. At the end, the lilliputian petitioner has a bag of goodies and a picture with Santa.

During all this, I am doing close-up magic, "pulling" lights from the Christmas trees (the offices have a fierce tree decorating contest), making coins appear, and generally making fun.

Around noon, the 500 or so people line up and get lunch (which is fantastic) while I set up for my platform show. My holidays shows always have some different material, more if it's a repeat client.

This year, I planned to end with a classic Japanese piece, the "Snowstorm in China." This involves cutting tissue paper into a snowflake or other shape, tearing it up and immersing the pieces in water. The sodden pieces are squeezed out and fanned, and become dry confetti, which is fanned into the air and appears as snow.

It's a great piece, and with the right script and music, there's not a dry eye in the house.

It had not snowed yet that year, and so I ended my show by promising to add the one thing that was missing from that holiday season. The piece got a great response, especially from the kids, who rushed the stage to collect bits of the "magic snow" to take home.

As I was leaving the base gate, I had a wonderful view of the US Capitol, the Washington Monument and the Jefferson Memorial. Then I saw something else.

It was starting to snow!

Big fluffy flakes, like something out of a cartoon, coming down with purpose. I could hardly believe my eyes!

Then I thought of those kids going home from the party and seeing the snow - and their parents trying to explain for the hundredth time that it really WASN'T magic.

But maybe it was.

Then I remembered something that has had me chuckling ever since. Earlier that day, as I was entering the first gate,. a Marine corporal, bristling with armaments, greeted me. As he looked over my car, he made conversation. "So what do you do in your show?" he asked.

"I make it snow," I replied.

"No, really."

"Really."

Now all I could picture was that Marine watching me leave the base - and then seeing the snow.

Sometimes things just come together. I live for moments like that.

Merry Christmas!

ERIC