From the desk of Leslie Forrest, IFCA Director of Office & Membership Programs:  As I sit here in front of my computer writing for the last day of this Virtual MAGIE experience, I have been reflecting back on the last 16 MAGIE shows I helped organize.  What a ride it has been and the show has always been my opportunity to put faces with the names I see on paperwork and the voices I hear on the phone.  Whether or not I remember your name each year, I sure look forward to seeing you all walk through the registration doors on the third week of every August.  Next week, I will miss that the most. 

 

Today should have been the day the IFCA staff and MAGIE committee members would be at the showgrounds marking out the booth spaces.  As we run the measuring wheel, we can look up and see a lot of equipment already staged for move-in, with more arriving each hour.  This year the field sits quiet and empty. 

 

I have learned through this cancellation process how deeply the exhibitors care about the future of MAGIE.  I hope you have been able to listen to their messages in the videos and know that next week, they will truly miss the interaction they would have had with all the MAGIE attendees. 

 

Next week on Wednesday or Thursday, which would have been the 2020 MAGIE show, I hope you will fire up a grill, cook a pork chop, tenderloin, brat, or ribeye and let the smells virtually transport you to the show at the McLean County Fairgrounds in Bloomington, Illinois.  Oh yeah, don’t forget, top it off with an ice cream sandwich!

 

Now, back to the video lineup we have in store for you today.  Three more of your favorite exhibitors have exciting information to share with you.  Also, we’ve included a BONUS video—one of our long-time IFCA members submitted a video to share their MAGIE experience.  You can only find out who it is by watching!