Staff
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Staff
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Name: Mary Jane Harper
Lounge Name: MJLeakyCon
LeakyCon Position: Co-Lead Director
TLC Position (if applicable): Forum Moderator, Corner Booth Moderator, Sometimes Galleries Moderator and Full-Time Member of the Leaky Lounge
To Relieve Boredom: Go out with friends, surf the internet, listen to music...actually, I'm a bit of a work-a-holic...so I'm so very rarely bored!
About Me: I am the sort of person who loves to read "About Me" sections, but draws a blank when asked to write one about myself. I'm definitely a "bright side of your life" kind of person, and believe in trying something before I form a definitive opinion about it. I admit to occasionally getting mushy about HP, sometimes laughing too loud, and always wanting to make the world a better place.
Where and Why Did You Pick Up Philosopher's/Sorceror's Stone: I picked up Sorceror's Stone because I had already read Goblet of Fire and Order of the Phoenix. I figured, since I had already seen all the movies (1-3 at that point), I could start with the 4th book and be fine. A completely laughable notion at this point in my life.
Favorite Potter Book, Film, Character: Favorite HP book...hands down: Deathly Hallows. It's all about the journey, and DH was the first Potter book I actually had to wait for. Favorite HP Film: Order of the Phoenix. I'm digging the evolution. Character (sigh): Toss up between Hermione and Ron. I can identify with a lot of different aspects of each of their personalities (attitudes, insecurities, loyalties, etc) .
Favorite Wrock Band: Such an unfair question. I love pretty much ALL Wizard Rock bands, but have a soft spot for Matt (The Whomping Willows) and Alex (The Remus Lupins).
Favorite TV Show(s): I watch entirely too much TV, and TiVO has made this addiction much, much worse. I love The Office, Grey's Anatomy, Brothers and Sisters, Prison Break, Law and Order: SVU, Numbers...really, I could go on.
Always Wanted to Visit: The Northern Mediterranean (Greece, Italy, France, Spain). When I see pictures, the landscapes speak to my soul. It's the sort of place I must see, in person, before I die.
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Name: Stephanie Dornhelm
Lounge Name: StephanieElf
LeakyCon Position: Co-Lead Director
TLC Position: PotterCast Elf Manager
To Relieve Boredom: I wish I had time to be bored...Seriously, in my free time, I enjoy going to the theatre, reading, shopping, spending time with family and friends, and volunteering at my local animal shelter.
About Me: I'm 30 years old (eek!), and I'm recovering from a short-lived career as an attorney by tutoring high school students. (Apparently, I'm still trying to figure out what I want to be when I grow up.) I've been a fan of all things Potter since I first read Sorceror's Stone in 1999, and I joined the Leaky staff as a PotterCast Elf in Summer 2006.
Where and Why Did You Pick Up Sorceror's Stone: In December of 1999, I was on vacation in the mountains with my boyfriend's (now my husband's) family for the first time. They're a family of hikers, and I hate to hike, so I was looking for any excuse to stay indoors. My husband's sister had left Sorceror's Stone on the coffee table, so the next time his family wanted to go on a hike, I grabbed it and said, "I can't. I'm reading, um, Harry Potter." As soon as they left, I actually began reading, and was hooked instantly. On the drive home, I insisted that we stop at a bookstore to buy my own copy of Sorceror's Stone, as well as Chamber of Secrets and Prisoner of Azkaban.
Favorite Potter Book, Film, Character: Prisoner of Azkaban is my favorite book and film, and Hermione is my favorite character.
Favorite Wrock Band: The Remus Lupins
Favorite Non-Potter Books: Anything by Jane Austen, Nigella Lawson, LM Montgomery, Philip Pullman, William Shakespeare, Shel Silverstein, and JRR Tolkien
Favorite City: Jerusalem
Video Games: None; I'm the world's worst video game player.
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Name: Kimberly Denz
Lounge Name: flipendo
LeakyCon Position: Logistics Chair
TLC Position (if applicable): PotterCast Tekkie
To Relieve Boredom: In the rare occasion I actually experience boredom, I relieve it by reading.
About Me: Professionally, I've been a network administrator, programmer analyst, and project manager. I obviously love computers and technology and have worked in the field for over ten years. Still, I truly enjoy reading a good old fashioned book to anything technology delivers today. I discovered The Leaky Cauldron website while searching the Internet for Harry Potter news and canon after the release of Book Five. I naturally joined the Leaky Lounge when it opened and offered reading groups for Book Six. When Leaky's podcast, PotterCast, launched, I felt it was just another way Leaky was bringing the Harry Potter fandom together. It is this sense of community, and the love and respect Leaky exhibits for J.K. Rowling's timeless story, that excites me most about the upcoming conference. I look forward to celebrating Harry's journey with this vibrant fandom.
Where and Why Did You Pick Up Philosopher's/Sorcerer's Stone: I found Harry Potter quite by accident. One day, my son brought home a Scholastic book order form from school with the Harry Potter books rudely crossed out with a thick, black marker. When I called the school to ask why these books were not available, I was told the school refused to support the "wicked, evil content being masked as children's literature." I promptly drove to the nearest book store and bought the first three Harry Potter books (the only ones printed at the time).
Favorite Potter Book, Film, Character: Book = Prisoner of Azkaban, Film = Prisoner of Azkaban, Character = Sirius Black. No, Severus Snape. Wait! Sirius. Um, maybe Snape?
Favorite Non-Potter Book(s): anything by Jane Austen
Favorite TV Show(s): The Office (US), Pushing Daisies, Arrested Development, Heroes, 24
Video Games: Xbox 360: Fable, Halo, SSX Tricky, Splinter Cell. Wii: Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix
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Name: Melissa Lawson
Lounge Name: mlwl
LeakyCon Position: Logistics Chair
TLC Position: Scribbulus editor and Lily & Stag reading group butterfly.
To Relieve Boredom: How can I be bored when there is so much happening in my head? But if I truly feel bored, I either make a mess or clean one up.
About Me: I’m a high school English teacher and a full-time library science student. When I’m not surrounded by teenagers, I’m eating my husband’s fantastic meals, reading like crazy, playing or singing music, or laughing with my friends… often all at the same time.
Where and Why Did You Pick Up Philosopher's/Sorceror's Stone: During my undergraduate program, I was forced to take a young adult literature course. I was annoyed at the thought, but it quickly became one of my favorite courses. The professor passed out copies of the first chapter of Sorceror’s Stone and read it aloud. I sat and silently cried over Harry, and new I had to find out what happened to that little boy.
Favorite Potter Book, Film, Character: The favorite book is generally which one I’m currently reading, but I could never have imagined being as emotionally invested as I was for Deathly Hallows. The entire experience surrounding the release, spent with my Leaky Lounge friends in Edinburgh and London, make this a very special book to me. For the movies, I’d have to pick either Order of the Phoenix or Sorceror’s Stone. I love that they both capture the mood of the books: creepiness and wonderment, respectively. And what are you, some kind of sadist? I couldn’t possibly pick a favorite character!
Always Wanted to Visit: Everything! There is so much awesomeness in the world. I want to live in Europe, but I’ve never even seen five of the continents, so it’s tough to know where to begin!
Favorite Non-Potter Book(s): Macbeth, Brave New World, The Perks of Being a Wallflower, Speak, The Penguin Dictionary of Symbols, The Eyre Affair, and (gasp!) Twilight are some of the top novels that I keep re-reading. Besides that, I pretty much know that if I pick up a book by Tom Robbins, Virginia Woolf, John Green, Margaret Atwood, Neil Gaiman, Roald Dahl, Toni Morrison, or Shakespeare that I’m just going to love it.
Dream profession: Full time student who is paid a lot to read of novels and also teach a little? Can I do that? But seriously, I’m going to love being a librarian in a high school or college.
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Name: Addie Caliendo
Lounge Name: MadamPenna
LeakyCon Position: Informal Programming Chair
TLC Position (if applicable): LeakyCon Staff
To Relieve Boredom: Boredom? What's that?
About Me: (brief paragraph in your own words; eg. likes, dislikes, what brought you to Potter, what excites you about the con, etc. 200 words or less) I first got into Potter from a good friend who dragged me to see the Sorcerer's Stone movie and I've been hooked ever since. We then joined another Potter fan site (which is now dead), and there I met Lisa (Questauthor), whom I've been very good friends with ever since. I'm the webmistress of her site for her books, The Quest Books, and even have a tattoo of the book's main symbol. She and I went to Prophecy 2007 together, where I met much of the Leaky staff and fell in love with them all! There, the idea for LeakyCon was spawned and a new project was born! Oh the magic of Potter… it has truly changed my life and I cannot wait to spread the Potter love through LeakyCon!
Favorite Potter Book, Film, Character: Deathly Hallows -- I bawled my eyes out during Ch. 34 and when the whole book was over... I cried for another hour straight... it was the end of an era and I lamented the loss of a very good friend that absolutely changed my life. Goblet of Fire: Oh Cedric.... :'(
I seriously thought about my favorite character for 10 minutes... Molly... no Dumbledore... no Hermione...I think it's Neville. Yes, Neville Longbottom... awwww :D I big heart him <3
Favorite Non-Potter Book(s): The Quest Books, of course!
Favorite Movie(s): Fried Green Tomatoes
Dream Profession: To have Hot Cheryl's job!
Always Wanted to Visit: All of Europe!
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Name: Lisa DeGroodt
Lounge Name: Quest Author
LeakyCon Position: Director of Communication Committee (affectionately known as CHARM – Communicating Happenings And Resource Management)
TLC Position (if applicable): Reading Group Room Leader/Facilitator
To Relieve Boredom: I write (duh), scrapbook, play with the kids, skype, and darn that MJ, I filk my eyes out lately!
About Me: I’m a forty something mother of two, happily married to a wonderful spousal unit who indulges my affair with the other man in my life (Harry). I have my Master’s Degree in Human Resources, and I’ve worked in the field for over 20 years (yikes, that’s pretty darn scary!). I’m the proud owner of three cats who ignore me on a regular basis, and two baby desert tortoises who have more personality than all my grandparents (well, to be fair to my grandparents, they’re all dead so it’s not that difficult). Mostly, I write. I’m the author of the Quest Series, fantasy fables about Interdimensional travel and maintaining the balance between Good and Evil. You can guess which side I want winning (Good, just in case you think I have death mark on my arm or something). I enjoy the writing and publishing process (well, not so much line edits *insert barfing noise here*). I love talking to people about the series. I’m thrilled, excited and giddy at the prospect of the LeakyCon! I can’t wait to get to Boston and have just a fan-dab-u-lous time with all my Leaky friends, and making new ones along the way.
Where and Why Did You Pick Up Philosopher's/Sorceror's Stone: My sister, also an author (Susan Wright) encouraged me to read them, because she’d read the short story that was the basis of Oracle Quest and she said “I think you’ll like it, she has a lot of things in her books like you have in yours.” Dang, she was right!
Favorite Wrock Band: Gotta go with my man, Alex and say the Remus Lupins. They are the only ones who visit Phoenix on a regular basis and I love bouncing about to his tunes!
Dream Profession: Oh, lord, to be able to quit working and write FULL TIME. Can I just say… nirvana????
Always Wanted to Visit: Scotland. My ancestors are from Scotland and I’d love to visit the area… and do you think Jo would mind if I dropped by for tea?
During Comfy Time, I...: Kick back in the comfy chair downstairs with the remote in one hand, a book in the other, a nice beverage by my side and watch Buffy or Angel or DIY or Food Challenges or Bravo Reality shows… veg out. Total veg.
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Name: Lizzie Keiper
Lounge Name: Lizzieangel90
LeakyCon Position: Youth Programming Director
TLC Position: Editorial Assistant
To Relieve Boredom: I read, take photos, watch movies and TV, and spend time with my niece.
About Me: I'm a student living in Nashville, TN, and love all things Harry Potter. I joined the team at Leaky as "The Little Cheese" in June of 2006 and have been having fun ever since. A few of my favorite things are reading, photography, penguins, Starburst candies, and my computer. I don't like most vegetables, TV commercials, and traffic. My banana bread is the greatest ever, according to many Leaky staffers. I'm so excited to be a part of LeakyCon, and I can't wait to bring some fun times to all the younger Potter fans! See you all in Boston for a wonderful weekend of fun!
Favorite Potter Book, Film, Character: Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows, Harry Potter and the Sorcerer's Stone, Hermione Granger
Favorite Non-Potter Book(s): The Quest Books by Lisa DeGroodt and The Twilight Series by Stephenie Meyer
Dream Profession: Book Editor for a Publishing Company
Favorite TV Show(s): Chuck, Supernatural, Heroes, NCIS, Robin Hood, Doctor Who, Pushing Daises, Ugly Betty, Grey's Anatomy, Dirty Sexy Money, 24, How I Met Your Mother, Big Bang Theory, and lots more!
Video Games: Anything Mario. I'm a Nintendo gal.
Hobbies: Reading, Photography, Editing, Card Writing, and babysitting.
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Name: Claudette
Lounge Name: kadi
LeakyCon Position: Academic Programming Director
TLC Position (if applicable): Evile Consultant
To Relieve Boredom: The Office and children's literature :)
About Me: I'm an elementary school teacher :) Or at least I hope I'll have found a job by the time people read this. I generally enjoy being Slythery and receiving mail. I tend to dislike do gooding, cuddly things, and wool as I'm allergic. Love for Harry because he made myself and millions of other children life-long readers.
Where were You For the DH Release: Taking my certification exam. Still bitter }-/
Favorite Potter Book, Film, Character: Snape. Snape. Severus Snape.
Favorite Wrock Band: DATM
Favorite Non-Potter Book(s): Jane Austen
Favorite TV Show(s): The Office & Veronica Mars (which was cancelled *sob*)
Dream Profession: Teacher w/ 400K salary
Favorite City: Boston
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The-Leaky-Cauldron.org Senior Staff:
Melissa Anelli, Pottercast Host, Associate Producer, Site Editor, Editor-in-Chief of the-leaky-cauldron.org
Melissa Anelli is a newspaper journalist (Staten Island Advance) living in New York City who is smitten by all things Harry Potter. A Georgetown University grad, her work has also appeared on the cable channel NY1 and in the newsmagazine U.S. News & World Report. She joined TLC in October 2001 and has enjoyed the many early mornings and late nights she's spent keeping it up to date. In Melissa's free (ha!) time she works on more projects than she can handle, sees more theater than she can afford and consumes more coffee than is healthy for anyone
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John Noe, Pottercast Host, Executive Producer, and Site Designer
John Noe is a 21 year old Potter fan who's been a Leaky staffer since 2003. He is currently a student at the Miami International University of Art and Design, and is studying Visual/Special Effects and Motion Graphics, with the dream of being able to one day report to all the Leaky readers as part of the Effects crew for the last Potter film or two. Now with Leaky 5 finally up, he is happy to be able to go back and put more time and attention into the weekly PotterCasts, of which he is the main producer, editor, and mindless co-host. How did he ever get into this "Potter stuff?" The thanks/blame lay with his siblings: Anna, Maria, Melissa, Allison, GoodOle Steve, and Baby Boo.
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Sue Upton, Pottercast Host and Site Editor
Sue Upton is very proud to be a member of the House of Hufflepuff. Having worked in broadcast media for over 20 years , Sue is TLC's Senior News Editor. One day she hopes to complete her PhD and help future Daily Prophet reporters on their way, but in the meantime Sue spends her free time doing volunteer work and helping at her child's school. Sue's hobbies include archaeology, watching films, and spending time at the beach. Sue was honored to join the staff in January, 2004.
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Nick Poulden, Head Programmer, the-leaky-cauldron.org
Age, Location, Occupation: 21; Leamington, UK; Web designer
Favourite TV Shows: Battlestar, Deadwood, The Prisoner
Favourite Authors: J.K. Rowling, Terry Pratchett, Robin Hobb
Likes: Computering, spending time with friends, Google
Dislikes: Bad design, Global warming, Microsoft
Admits to: Being a geek!
Working on: Lots of top secret Leaky projects!
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Doris Herrmann, Project Coordinator, the-leaky-cauldron.org
Project Coordinator
Doris Herrmann is an English/Language Arts teacher from Texas.. Doris is the mother of three teenage boys who eat more in one meal then most people eat in one week. She came to Leaky, posting in the comments section, and became a forum moderator in April of 2005. She is now the Project Coordinator for TLC as well as a forum administrator for The Leaky Lounge. Doris loves surfing, the beach, and having long lunches with her friends at The Kemah Boardwalk.
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Alex Robbin, Prorammer, the-leaky-cauldron.org
Alex Robbin is a high school student who spends what free time he has working on multiple websites. While still managing to keep up with school work, he is a Leaky Tekkie over at the Leaky Lounge, keeps up his own site, Godric’s Hollow, does web design for companies around the greater Boston Area, and now is working throughout Leaky to update pages that need updating, and spruce up pages that need sprucing. He also maintains the PotterCast.com area which is still undergoing changes. He will be updating a lot of pages throughout Leaky with new information, links and much, much, more. Alex has been doing web design for the past 3 years and has progressed greatly in the passed year while working on the Leaky Lounge and on Leaky.
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Kristin Brown: is a geographer from Northern Virginia. When she’s not making maps or pondering the effects of urban sprawl in America, she’s spending time and money on her other interests, which include taking photos, riding horses, and traveling. She first came across the Harry Potter series in 1999, has been discussing the books online with fellow enthusiasts since 2000, and has been an administrator of SugarQuill.net since 2001.
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B.K. Delong: is a 20-something Web developer living in Salem, Massachussetts (the Witch City) with his wife, Kirky, and son, William. He joined TLC, (which started out as a Geocities-based Weblog from Kevin C. Murphy) in November 2000, eventually taking control of the site in May 2002; these days he spends a lot of time with his son, and volunteering for the Red Cross.