[Wikimania-l] Fwd: Wikimania 2011: Thank you!

[Itzik Edri]

---------- Forwarded message ----------
From: Wikimania 2011 <wikimania-info at wikimedia.org>
Date: Mon, Aug 15, 2011 at 1:20 PM
Subject: Wikimania 2011: Thank you!
To: itzik at infra.co.il


   [image: Wikimania 2011
website]<http://wikimedia.us2.list-manage.com/track/click?u=e76bc57bf194f09fd2e6012de&id=5b426f01f8&e=8effe95276>
  *Dear Wikimaniacs!*

 Thank you. Before anything else we would like to thank each and every one
of you. *Thank you for being part of this amazing experience.* Thank you for
a week of exaltation, the most exciting and inspiring week we have ever had.

For over a year, the team of volunteers worked on the production of
Wikimania 2011. We had all kinds of concerns about problems or things that
might not work. When it comes to such a complicated organization, with tens
of suppliers and hundreds of participants, we had all the reasons to fear
that something, however small, might go wrong and harm the whole event. It
is a great feeling to realize that none of these concerns materialized.

We saw your smiles at the beach party; we saw you dancing happily. We
blushed when we heard your complements. Only then did we allow ourselves to
relax for a moment and wear a smile on our faces; a smile of satisfaction –
*we have made it.*

In his opening talk, Tomer described the complexity of organizing such a
conference. Also, Deror, at the closing ceremony, shared with you the story
of the long way we had gone in the past year producing Wikimania 2011. There
is no need for me to repeat their words. However, it is important to me to
say that Wikimania is first and foremost a community meet-up. It is not
another conference. Beside its important goal of sharing ideas and discuss
the movement's activities and the collaborative work of volunteers from all
around the globe, it is primarily a once-a-year opportunity for hundreds of
activists from tens of countries throughout the world to meet – to say hello
to good old friends, get acquainted with new people, and, of course, to
enjoy every minute.

  *For more photos, check our Flickr
stream<http://wikimedia.us2.list-manage.com/track/click?u=e76bc57bf194f09fd2e6012de&id=b9be39046e&e=8effe95276>
*

 This is the principle that we bore in our minds during the entire
production process of this conference, namely to let you enjoy yourself as
much as possible. We hope we succeeded in making Wikimania in Haifa a
significant experience. This is our gift to you and our way of saying thank
you for your longstanding activity as volunteers in favor of the whole
world.

On behalf of Wikimedia Israel, I would like to thank, once again, the tens
of volunteers who worked so hard on the production of the event. Some of
them had to bustle around and could not hear a single presentation, and yet
they had the pleasure of ensuring your enjoyment.
We wish the best of luck to the team of Wikimania 2012 in Washington
DC<http://wikimedia.us2.list-manage1.com/track/click?u=e76bc57bf194f09fd2e6012de&id=760a4f6ef0&e=8effe95276>.
It is not easy to produce Wikimania, and only those who have had this
experience can understand how much time and effort it takes of your daily
lives during almost a year. Dear friends, we are here for you and we will be
happy to assist you in any way possible.

*See you next year in Washington DC!*

  *Itzik Edri*
 *Spokesman, Wikimedia Israel*
 *Wikimania 2011 local team*
itzik at wikimedia.org.il

 *"..I've had the time of my life. No I never felt this way before, Yes I
swear it's the truth, and I owe it all to you" --Time of my life.*
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