2013 in Review - DonB! Ministries

Large Photo: Dale and his cousin in California
Inset Photo: The Bursells, making "grass angels" for our friends back in Minnesota

2014 is well under way, and I realized it has been a while since my last writing here.  I've been keeping up with the activities of DonB! Ministries by writing on Facebook, as well as sending out an email newsletter, but I also realize that not everyone is on Facebook, so I wanted to drop by and let you know what's happening.

January 2013 was a busy month.  Deb & I began attending a new church, New Hope Community Church, in Cambridge, Minnesota.  I performed my 10th show for the "Delta Pilots for Kids Program" at St. Joseph's Shelter in St. Paul. I took a winter trip to Texas to perform and teach at the Joey to the World Clown Conference for 4 days. I did my 50th & 52nd show for Camp Lebanon in Bertram, Minnesota, including a test run of mid-air fishing (magically catching live fish on a pole) and gave a couple of other new routines a test run.  Deb, Deanna and I continued working with the junior high youth group at Emmanuel Baptist Church.

February was a slower month, but I did a couple of human mannequin gigs for Mannequin in Motion, including Bobby & Steve's BIG party at the Hilton in Minneapolis.

March started the Upward Sports season, and I travelled around Minnesota, Wisconsin, Illinois performing for players and their families.  I also has opportunity to play 2 fun nights of music (I play bass guitar) with musicians from around Minnesota, and our main gig was at Emma's Pizza right here in Mora, and almost 80 people showed up for pizza and music. We repeated the event once again at New Beginnings Church in Cambridge, Minnesota, on April 21st.

April was the month that I started sending out an email newsletter, the DonB! Irregular Newsletter.  If you do not receive it, please let me know and I'll add your email to my growing list of friends around the world. April 21st is when I started playing bass guitar on the worship team at our new church. I performed for an 80-year-old's birthday party, and performed at St. Canice Catholic Church in Kilkenny, Minnesota, and there were more people at my program than there were on the town's population sign!

On May 1st I took my first flight of the year to Nashville, Tennessee (I took 2 more throughout the year) to perform for Katie Harris's surprise birthday party.  Katie is the wife of Harris III, the illusionist I travel with every so often. The Dontar Machine had its first gig of the year at Hamline University. The last week was spent performing and teaching at Fun Camp, in Calgary, Alberta, Canada, where performers of different specialties get together and learn from each other.

June brought some warmth, as well as shows for Morristown Dam Days (yes, it's really called that), an overnight Grad party in North St. Paul, and an all day event for employees of Delta Airlines at the MSP airport. I flew to Pocola, Oklahoma, and performed with Harris III, at a casino, owned by Christians that want to use the venue as an outreach tool.  How's THAT for "outside the box" thinking?

On June 23rd, our family left to drive to Sandy Cove Ministries in North East, Maryland, for 6 weeks. Each week there I did 2 shows, M.C'd the morning Brown Bag Devotions (of which I'm still working on the book about) and performed strolling entertainment throughout the weeks.  Deb & I were invited to take an all-day trip on Goldwing motorcycles through the mountains of Pennsylvania, and it was incredibly scenic. I also started shaving my head during the 2nd week of camp, and I've chosen to leave it that way.  "Bald is beautiful", or at least that's what my wife says.

My new hairstyle

Even though we were in Maryland for the summer, on July 18th I flew back to Minnesota to perform at Sonshine Music Fest in Wallmar, MN, on the invite of Randy Christensen.  I closed off my time there by watching the night time concert from Skillet, complete with fireworks! While in Maryland, Deb & I took an all-day trip to the ocean with our friends, the Weavers. It had been at least 2 years since I had done any swimming in an ocean, and it was fun.

In August, I performed at the Little Falls County Fair, and also performed at libraries around Minnesota for their summer reading program. On July 21st I went on the road with Randy Christensen and his son, Ben, and presented the L.O.L. Show in Wisconsin, Michigan, and Canada. On the 31st, I competed in my 2nd disc golf tournament in Brainerd, MN, and returned for the 30-somethinkth time to Trout Lake Camp, to perform for their family weekend.

In September I did 3 shows in South Dakota, and then flew down to Marshall, Missouri, to perform with Harris III and Bubba Dowling, presenting the "Bamboozled" Show. September 18th I performed for (at least the 20th year in a row) Faith Community Church in Hudson, Wisconsin, opening up their year of AWANA programs for families. The next day I drove into the upper peninsula of Michigan for 2 shows in Nagaunee and Ishpiming. Things then quieted down a bit for the last 12 days of September.

Dontar at Mayo Clinic

However, October came in like a lion, albeit a small lion, with a Dontar Event at Mayo Clinic in Rochester, another Dontar gig for a private corporate party, and then the usual stilt-walking gig I've been doing now for 8 years for Halloween in Coon Rapids, MN. I finished out the month at New Life Church in Princeton, MN., on Halloween night, presenting 2 shows there.

DonB, on New Year's Eve. Franklin, TN

November started with only 3 scheduled shows, but somehow became a busy month of teaching, and meetings, and travels.  Probably the rest I really needed?

December showed only 5 gigs at the beginning of the month, but by the end of the month, I had performed in Minnesota, California and Tennessee, entailing some really last minute additional shows. One of the highlights of December was being able to travel to California to see friends and relatives that we've not seen in years.  It was warm there. 

On our way to California

Throughout the year I've been playing disc golf more and more, especially when I visit the warmer areas of the United States. I have also been spending the last year helping to sell an entire collection of magic books on eBay, owned by a friend of mine. Some are modern, and some are from the late 1800s.

New Magic Books

Very Old Magic Books

Well, what can I say?  I've been blessed with a life that I don't deserve.  I type this as I sit by our new fireplace, with a roof over my head, with friends and family all around me.  I'll close by sharing some fun photos from the year.

One of my favorite Christmas photos

Our disc gold group in CA

We first loved Rita's in Maryland, but
now they have them in California too!

California

Tennessee

Minnesota

More Dontar Pictures

If you haven't seen some of the 35 characters we have for our new "Dontar" machine, here are some photos of a few of them.

"Asylum S.K.P." - the crazy character

Craig Carlson, as "Dontar"

"Is it real?"  Many people ask that throughout the night

People are naturally drawn to "Dontar", because it is so unique

One of our female characters, "Grandma Bea's Pearls of Wisdom"

The female Gypsy Girl

"The Pirate"

"Solomon's Wisdom", a character we created for churches

"The Wizard" character

Other characters that we've created are a "Cheerleader", created for a special event through G.L. Berg, that took place at the University of Minnesota.

"Dontar" in action

A short video from the Vita.MN event we performed for at EPIC Nightclub in downtown Minneapolis.


The "Dontar" character is played by my good friend, Craig Carlson.


DonB!

Dontar Lives!!!

DonB! as "Dontar"

Last Friday evening, Wayzata High School seniors had their all-night- graduation lock-in party at Brunswick Center, and "Dontar" was there to entertain the grads.

Thanks to Mark & Lori at A Touch of Magic, my good friend, Craig Carlson, and I hauled the "Dontar" machine to Brooklyn Park and had the machine work the crowd for 2.5 hours, and they loved him.

For the first hour, I was inside the machine, while Craig was the barker, calling for people to experience the  wonder of our mechanical creation. For the second hour, Craig was inside the machine and I was able to lead people to the machine, encourage them to interact with "Dontar", dance with him, etc.  I enjoyed being inside AND outside the machine, as each one gave me different ways to have fun with the grads.

As people approached the machine, Dontar came to life (as much as a mechanical robot can), and interacted with the students, then delivered some funny "life advice" that they could take with them.  Some lucky grads also won the old "fortune-telling fish novelty", and some won a real deck of playing cards (that matched the ones spread around inside the machine).

Craig, as "Dontar"

Steady stream of people for 2 hours

People loved to stand around and discuss whether "Dontar" was real, or if he really was a mechanical machine.  Some stayed around for 10-15 minutes discussing it.  It was great!

If you would like to see Dontar appear at your next event, 

call 320-679-0060

and ask for "Dontar".  25+ characters to choose from.

Until next time...

DonB!

2 New Print Pieces for DonB!

It takes a while, but with some persistence, feedback from friends who know what they are doing, and a lot of tweaking, I finally finished 2 new pieces of publicity materials for DonB!.

The first one is based on feedback over the years of my red poster. It looked great, but the photo didn't properly portray what my programs are about. So, with a simplified design, subtle color usage, and trying to remember that "empty space is good", here is my new poster:

If you have a booking coming up with DonB! Ministries, please call and request the new posters.  Unless you want a really boring show, then don't use any posters at all.  :)

The second piece I finished is the advertising for our new Dontar Machine.  Based on the machine from the Tom Hank's movie, "BIG", we have created an "interactive LIVE robotic automaton." what is an "interactive LIVE robotic automaton", you say?  It is a multi-use machine that contains a robotic living half person, designed to fit over 25 different themes, that can come to life and drop prizes to participants.

The pirate drops foil chocolate coins.  "Grandma Bea" gives away funny, comical advice, the type your Grandma probably gave you at one time.  The casino dealer can either perform mechanical card routines, or give away prizes that fit into a casino-night themed party.

Other characters include "ASYLUM S.K.P.", for halloween parties, "Dontar" the comedy fortune-teller, "Elf Magic", featuring Santa's tallest elf performing magic, and giving away real magic tricks.  Others include the "Cheeky Magician", "Wisdom of Solomon" for Christian events, and your usual "Gypsy"-styled fortune-teller, giving away comedy fortunes.

Here is that new poster, already in the hands of 4 talent agencies in the Midwest:

Our first booking with the machine is this Thursday at the University of Minnesota, as a promotion for their extracurricular programming.  I will be in the box as a goofy, malfunctioning cheerleader, giving away pom-pom and megaphone keychains.  Pictures to follow.

Have a great week everyone,

DonB!

The Amazing "Dontar" Machine is Done!

I have been working on a project for about 2 years, and it finally has come to fruition.

If you've ever seen the movie, BIG, with Tom Hanks, then you may remember the machine on the boardwalk that Tom's character made a wish at, so that he could become big.  Well, I've always been intrigued by mechanical arcade games and automatons, so I set about making one for myself.  However, this one has many theme possibilities, and is also different in one main aspect: it has a live, living half-person inside of it.

Watch this video and you'll get a better idea of what it looks like, as well as what it can do:



Now THAT'S Cool!!!

The wooden and plexi components were built by Tim Anderson, here in Mora, and I put together the mechanical and electrical parts with the help of my neighbor, Jim, who is an electrician. After 6 months of planning, building and tweaking, it is finally done.

If you would like to see this machine appear at one of your events, give me a call, and we can talk about the various themes we already have for it, as well as more that you may think of.

I can't wait to get it out in public and start using it.

DonB!

DonB! Travels - Near & Far

It is that time of year that I sit down and take a look at where I have been this year. I have been involved with many new secular entertainment events, but the ministry work is where my heart really is. Here's a list of some of the many places:

Minnesota Zoo - stilt walker

St. Joseph's Home for Children

K-Love Christian Cruise - Bahamas

Colonial Church of Edina

Cub Scout Blue & Gold Dinner Show

Mt. Airy Christian Academy - Maryland

Upward Basketball Awards Night - Virginia Beach, VA

...time with my sister, Amy, in Virginia

First Assembly of God - Fort Wayne, IN

Upward Basketball Awards Night - Fort Wayne, IN

St. Joseph Upward Basketball Night - Fort Wayne, IN

First Baptist - Owatonna, MN

Easter Show - Willmar Assembly of God

Slap Happy Clown Convention - Winnipeg

Calvary Church - Fargo, ND

Grin Doctors Show - Mora, MN

Elm Creek Comm. Church - Osseo, MN

Premiere Christian Cruise - Jamaica

Camp Lebanon Family Camp - Upsala, MN

Grace Chapel - Bagley, MN

Trout Lake Camp Family Camp - MN

Menominee Alliance Church - Menominee, WI

Fairview Elementary - Mora, MN

Mabel Tainter Theatre Outreach - Menominee, WI

Sandy Cove Ministries - North East, MD

Metro Connections Event - Mpls, MN

Woodcrest Baptist Church - MN

Macy's Plate-Spinning Event - Mpls, MN

Sunset Christian Center - Rocklin, CA

Creekside Community Church - Castro Valley, CA

Rogers, MN parade (our whole family on unicycles!)

High Point Church - Rogers, MN

Metro Connections Event - Nicolett Island, MN

Grindstone Lake Bible Camp - Sandstone, MN

Camp Lebanon Family Camp - Upsala, MN

Calvary Baptist - North Carolina

Sonshine Music Fest - Willmar, MN

TNT Clown Conference (speaker/performer) - GA

Crosspoint Christian Church - Selma, AL

New Life Church - Woodbury, MN

Cirq du Jour Circus Camp - Detroit Lakes, MN

Corporate Party - New Hope, MN

Cirque Imaginings tour - MN, SD, IA

MN State Fair w/Mannequin in Motion (MIM)

Calvary Comm. Church - St. Cloud, MN

Trout Lake Camp again

Inspiration Point Family Camp - Clitherall, MN

Trout Lake Camp again

Pinewood Elementary School - Moundsview, MN

Metro Connections Event - Mpls, MN

UofM outdoor cancer event - stilts & magic

MIM - Palace Guard at Jaguar Dealership

Ogema Baptist Church - Ogema, MN

New Life Church - Princeton, MN

Faith Church - Hudson, WI

MIM "Snowstorm in China" Event -Prior Lake, MN

MIM Private Event

Chaska School District - Chaska, MN

Northwestern College Alumni Weekend - Roseville, MN

Maple Grove Free Church - Maple Grove, MN

Stilts for Halloween event - Ramsey, MN

School Fun Fest Show - Chaska, MN

St. Paul's Lutheran Church - Melrose, MN

Christian Life Fellowship - Port Edwards, WI

Trailview Title I Show - Mora, MN

Variety Outreach Show - St. Cloud, MN

Verndale Elementary - Verndale, MN

Kilber Fun-raiser Show - Champlin, MN

MIM White Statue Event - Sartell, MN

Higher Expectations - Brooklyn Park, MN

Cathedral Press Christmas party - Long Prairie, MN

Hanco Christmas Party - Eagan, MN

Leadership Appreciation Dinner - Fort Wayne, IN

Chaska School show - Chaska, MN

MIM - MN Vikings Christmas Party

Inspiration Point New Year's Party - Clitherall, MN

Along with all of that, I worked 34 days for UPS leading up to Christmas, I performed in quite a few events for Mannequin in Motion, I played various super heroes at "Hero Headquarters" during the Wednesday night Kids Club activities at church, I attended a 3-day workshop with world famous clown, Avner the Eccentric, I ran PowerPoint at our church once or twice a month on Sundays, attended the leader's retreat for our kids workers at church, I performed in the community play with Debbie, I added 4 new routines to my shows, I read about 15 books, attended Men's Fraternity at our church, met an Ed Sullivan look-alike, flew on a few airplanes, put another 42,000 miles on our vehicles, and watched our kids continue to grow up and keep busy.

God is good, and He has shown much of that goodness on me and my family this year. If you want to see the many ways He has done so, please read back through the many posts that I have written this year. It's all good.

What is in store for 2008? Well, I have 23 shows on the calendar already, and look forward to another 50 or more. Open doors of opportunity to share the Gospel with folks around the United States and the world.

Thank you for reading this online newsletter. Please continue to pray for many lives changed in 2008.

My hopes and prayers for you all,

DonB!

Back online...after 2 weeks off.

Greetings everyone. It is so nice to be back online. My Internet connection was not working for almost 3 full weeks, but thanks to my 11-year-old son, Dale, playing with the ActiveX controls and the Add-Ons menu, it's working again. Yay!!

On 11/8, I did a Character-Building Show for the Title 1 Program at Trailview School in Mora. There were 65 kids and 75 adults in attendance. It was a great opportunity for our hometown school to get the word out about what Title 1 Enrichment is and how it can benefit the kids that really need it.

On 11/11, my illusionist friend, Toby Travis, asked me if I would help out at a show at the historic Paramount Theatre in St. Cloud, Minnesota. I met his crew there at 8:30AM, and helped load all of his equipment into the theatre. We (there were 7 of us) spent the next 5-1/2 hours setting up the show, including his very extensive lighting system. He did 2 shows, one at 3 PM and one at 7:30 PM. My parents came out to see the 3 PM show, and some other magicians from the Twin Cities came to the 7 PM show.

The shows were a lot of fun. Nick Sharpe, from here in Minnesota opened each show with his "Street Performing" character presenting card manipulations and finding a signed card in a lemon! It was great, as he was able to really warm up the audience and get them into "show mood". Toby carried the rest of the show by performing his illusions, as well as some smaller mind benders such as linking rings and a very cool dancing handkerchief routine.

I performed a 12-15 set in the 2nd half with my ring juggling, Headmover illusion, Bowling ball juggling and finished with the Unicycle Medley. The audiences were both great, and they set me up for some funny moments of improvisation. Thanks Toby.

What I learned while in St. Cloud is that these 2 shows were the last BIG illusions shows Toby will be doing for some years. With his main female assistants (his daughters) growing up and doing their own things, Toby has decided to pursue more of his overseas ministry work, utilizing mostly props and routines that can more easily fly to the locations. Please pray that direction from God will be clear for Toby and MAGI Ministries, and that many more doors will be opened to share the Gospel in the countries where he ministers.

On 11/16 and 11/17, I had the wonderful privilege of watching our daughter, Deanna, act and dance in the Mora High School musical, Hello Dolly, here in Mora. She was great, as was the entire show, including all of the choreography (done by my wife, Deb). Wow, what a talented family!!!

The FUN-raiser that I have previously mentioned for Althea Kilber took place on November 17th. There were games for kids, a bakery sale, hot dogs, cotton candy, pop, a HUGE silent auction and a variety show featuring many different magic talents from across Minnesota and Wisconsin. Norm Barnhart, the organizer of the show, asked me to be the closing act. Once again, thanks to the great acts that performed before me, the audience was roaring with laughter and having a good time. So my part was even easier. I finished with the unicycles, and my son, Dale, rode his unicycle off the edge of the stage (on purpose), and successfully bounced all the way back up the steps to the stage again. The audience loved it, and I am a very proud Papa.

And, I have to say, for all of you that were not able to make it to the event, Althea looked great! Even with cancer throughout her body, it obviously has not hurt her spirit. Her smile was an uplift to all in attendance. There were so many people there, it was wonderful. I don't know the exact amount the event raised, but it was around $5000.00. Very cool. Please continue to pray for the Kilber family as they continue the struggle with the uncomprehedible thing called cancer.

Tuesday, the 20th, I did my first human statue event for Mannequin in Motion. I was made up to look like a marble statue, and stood on a platform in the middle of the room at a party for the big $$$ contributors to the St. Cloud Hospital. Some big names were there, but the one we had the most fun with was "Aunt" Mable Coborn, the founder of Coborns grocery stores. Debbie was there as my "spotter", making sure no one messed around with the statue too much. Other than a cramp in my left leg, it was quite an experience.

Well, let me finish by reminding all of you to take some time today, and give thanks to God above for the many blessings He has brought into your lives. If I had to list all of mine, we'd be here for an eternity. Even in the hard times, remember to give thanks.

I'll leave you with this verse:

Be joyful always; pray continually; give thanks in all circumstances, for this is God's will for you

in Christ Jesus.

-I Thessalonians 5:16-18

Happy Thanksgiving to you and your family, from DonB! and the whole Bursell family.

DonB!

----that's my beautiful wife, Debbie

Time to slow down a bit.

When I looked at this newsletter, I was surprised to see that my last post was back on September 21st. Wow.

Since then I've done a few more Mannequin in Motion (MIM)events, including a show that was Asian themed. I played the mannequin-brought-to-life by a magician, played by my friend, Mia Barnhart. I then "discovered" the bowling ball and juggled it. For those of you that have seen my shows, you know what happens in that routine. The group that was involved as performers is shown below. LtoR: Me, Ron, Deanna, Debbie, Katie, Mia and (in front) Ruthie. A great group to work with.

On the 29th I did another event for MIM, playing the character I've seen before, but never imagined I would be playing it: Golden Boy, a completely gold statue. I played it for 4 hours at a large B'Nai event (a party for boy-girl Jewish twins). It was a fun event, but exhausting.

On October 3rd I did my first school event of the year in Chaska, MN. Even with only 60 kids in attendance, they were an excellent audience. With such a small group, we did a question/answer time afterward, and they asked some great questions. The developer of the event liked the show so much she has already scheduled me for two more. Very cool.

This weekend I went down to Northwestern College in Roseville, MN, for their Alumni Weekend and Homecoming celebration. On Saturday I strolled around for 3 hours doing juggling and close-up magic for folks attending the game and tailgating party. Then, on Saturday, I was to perform 10 minutes in the Sunday service. As it turned out, after my 10 minutes were done, I then followed all of the kids to another room, where I performed for another 25 minutes while the adults listened to a great testimony by Dallas Jenkins, producer and director of "Midnight Clear", a book and movie project that has won some pretty big awards around the country. Dallas is an alumni of Northwestern College, and co-founder of Jenkins Entertainment.

The kids were then sent back in to sit with their families, while Scott Krippayne did a mini-concert. Scott, along with his percussionist, Charley Petit, are both very friendly, down to earth guys. When talking to them, I felt as if I were talking to close friends, not "stars" with attitudes. And, after the event was over, Scott was nice enough to give me his latest CD, Autobiography, and autograph it for my daughter, Deanna (she's the one that introduced me Scott's music with his song, "I'm Not Cool"). Keep up the great work Scott. You Rock!

Now I get this week off from performing, except for the fun I have playing "Jessie Crankshaft" for our church's Wednesday Night Kid's Club. Jessie runs J.C. Salvage, using the many things found there to teach kids valuable life lessons, as well as (right now) the 10 Commandments and why they are still very important for all people. The kids already have the first 2 memorized and learned. This week, we add 2 more.

Do YOU know the 10 Commandments? Click HERE to see them.

By the way, look at the three photos above. It's as if we are triplets, separated by birth. Yeah? You decide.

August = Very Busy!

It seems like only yesterday that I posted my last update to this newsletter. Then I realized it was way back on August 4th! Life goes by too fast sometimes.

August 5th found me doing a morning program for New Life Church in Woodbury, Minnesota. They were a great group of attentive kids, and with the group being fairly small (about 80 people), I was thankful to be able to talk with them one-to-one following the show.

I left that evening to head to northern Minnesota to help teach circus skills with Cirque du Jour at Kamp Kace, where kids and families that have been affected by cancer had the entire week to learn circus skills, and then put on a show (and it was FABULOUS) at the end of the week for their families. Watching the campers, ranging in age from 6-17, perform at the end of the week, was like being a proud parent, as if it were my own kids putting on the show. Thanks go to Chris Allison for inviting me to help teach for the week. Chris, whom I haven't seen in over 15 years, was my first roommate at Ringling Brothers Clown College way back in 1984. It was great seeing him again, and working in such a successful circus arts program.


I then rushed back home to get my stilts, and headed to Eden Prairie, Minnesota, to walk my stilts for Starkey Labs' BIG anniversary party. It was a very hot day, but a lot of fun juggling and doing close-up magic for the employees and their families.

The next day (Sunday), my daughter, Deanna, and I headed over to Willmar, Minnesota, to begin rehearsals for the Cirque Imaginings (CI) tour. Cirque Imaginings is a show that I helped put together back in 2002, and it has taken 5 years to compile the performers for another tour. Randy Christensen wrote the entire show, about a young girl that spends time visiting her old uncle Oxford. Through the exploration of Oxford's many library books, Emily learns to use her imagination. She also learns how the choices she makes can affect her for the good, or the bad. The show featured Randy Christensen (Oxford P. Nutts, juggler, skateboarder, chair balancer, stilt-walker, mime, writer, director), Greg Philips (good magician, bad magician, message-giver), Darren & Heather Stevenson (sound tech, dancer, mime, choreographer), Ben Christensen (juggler, Chinese Yo-Yo-ist), Emily Chermak (lead part, loud laugher), Micah Philips (stage manager, runner, equipment loader), Deanna Bursell (Zig-Zag girl, dancing bag, giggler), Les Chermak (coach driver, workaholic), and me.

We toured Minnesota, South Dakota and Iowa (To see a good description of the show, click HERE). It was a very exhausting tour, but worth every minute of time spent with other performers, meeting people after the shows, and hearing the audience respond to the message (I had to listen from backstage) each night. Thanks to all of the folks that made the tour financially possible, and for the churches that hosted the show. It was another BIG success. I only hope we don't have to wait another 5 years to do it again.

When I returned home from the Cirque Imaginings tour, I had a day to get my stuff together, and head to the Twin Cities. I did my first live mannequin gig, on August 24th, at the Minnesota State Fair, for Mannequin in Motion. It was strange how fascinated people are with a person that stands completely still. At least 30 times a minute, I could hear people saying "how does he not blink?!?", or "that is so strange!" A FUNNY STORY: The couple that lives across the street from us in Mora (80 miles from the Fair) were talking to me the next day, and mentioned he saw a "genii robot-guy" at the fair. When I told him that it was me, he ran into his house to tell his wife the strange news. Neither of them even knew it was me behind the costume and make-up. One of my daughter's friends walked right up to me, stared at me for a minute, said, "That's weird!", and walked away. She never even knew it was me. Now THAT'S weird.

Later that night, Deanna & I both were mannequins for an event for Arthur Murray dance studios customer appreciation event. I came to life occasionally and juggled, and Deanna came to life occasionally to do some ribbon dancing. Again, it was a fun way to use my entertainment skills, in a whole new way: standing still for a long time. I never thought I could do it.

On Saturday afternoon, I went back to Calvary Community Church (for the 8th time) and presented my DonB! Variety Show for their community outreach event. Their sanctuary was packed with community people, and I presented my spinning plates routine for the finale, and broke more plates than I ever have in a long time. It's the breaking of the plates that makes the routine so much fun, for me AND for the audience.

I then headed back down to the State Fair for two more hours of mannequin work. The genii I played was a little more interactive this time, performing magic tricks with the tips dropped at my feet. To see more photos, click HERE.

I then packed my show up and headed back to Trout Lake Camp for a show for their family camp. It is the 14th or 15th time I have performed there. James Rock, the program director, requested that I do the spinning plates finale, so I did. I think I only broke about 4 or 5 plates.

Please pray that the rest of this year can be busy, profitable, and offer some good times of ministry through whatever events come our way. May God bless you as much as he has me and my family. Drop me a line anytime at donb@donbministries.com

DonB!