Here are the November 2013 judge anniversaries.
15 years
Peter ManningLou Pulliam
John Shannon
William Azrael Spear
10 years
Mario ContrerasPedro de Diego
James Searles
Shigeru Motomura
Ville Kovelo
Brian Bradshaw
Michael Wiese
5 years
Nico BohnyBruce Mills
Brian Sitzman
Allison Medwin
James McKay
Mike Krasnitski
Our featured judge this month is Peter Manning, Level 2 from California, United States. Level 4 judge Sean Catanese had this to say about Peter:
See? They used my face as a model for the black mana symbol.
“Peter was one of the first Magic Judges I ever met, and his presence as a consummate professional and rules guru has set an exemplary tone in the “true Northern California” Magic Judge community for a very long time. Though Peter certified in a time when the only real difference between a Level 1 and a Level 2 judge was rules knowledge, his reach and commitment has grown well beyond that expertise. Peter’s position as a seasoned veteran in the community has made him a source of deep institutional knowledge for newcomers and a reliable leader whenever an event has needed someone to step up and take charge. The next time you see him on IRC (jetz0r), thank him for his continued service!”
This month, we have the Level 3 anniversary of Level 4 judge, Jurgen Baert. He certified for L3 back in 2008 at Pro Tour Berlin. He had a few people who wanted to comment, so we’ll start with Level 4 judge, Kevin Desprez. He said:
He’s judging and judging and having so much fun.
“Jurgen’s evolution in the Judge Program is amongst the most successful ones: Discovering judging in 2006, he achieved L3 in 2008 and L4 in 2010. Since then, he has consistently improved the Competitive tournaments, always coming up with innovative ideas on how to make things work better and, more importantly, smoother. The last example of it is the drive towards 11-hour days for judges at Limited GPs: While we have been running shifts for quite some time at European GPs to make judges’ days shorter, limited day 1s were still often about 12 to 13 hours because there was the deck construction period. But Jurgen felt it was also possible in limited to go down to 11 hours a day. So he came up with a system that allowed starting a limited GP with about half of the staff. Yes, that includes product distribution! Since then, I see more and more judges amazed that they’re finished with day 1 around 19:00, and they feel pretty good about it!” Thumb up Jurgen ;)”
Level 3 judge, David de la Iglesia, had this to say:
“I met Jurgen at my first international GP, back in Rimini in 2008. He spent a lot of time outside the event with me and the other Spaniards, and since then I’ve had the luxury of having in him a mentor, a friend, and the closest thing to a brother I’ll ever have. Jurgen is probably one of the sincerest and more honest persons I’ve met. He’s the kind of guy that will always try to help you succeed, and he is a true boss at having his feet on the ground. He never gives up on people, and has this funny spark in his eyes that make you believe he’s a rascal, and surely up to no good. Truth is his positive demeanor is inspiring and contagious, and lifts up everyone’s spirits wherever he goes.
I’ve been blessed with the opportunity to celebrate with Jurgen his promotions to L3 at PT Berlin ’08 and to L4 at PT San Juan ’10. We’ve worked together countless events, traveled to many places, and had lots of fun together. The beauty of it all is I’m sure the best is yet to come. Congratulations Jurgen, here’s to another five years!”
Level 2 judge and fellow Belgian Arnaud Bourdoux said this about him:
Congratulations, mate.
“Jurgen is passionate about what he does. When performing something, he devotes himself body and soul to the task. This was already true when I first met him as a fresh level 1, and it allowed him to take the high-profile spot he’s now occupying in the judge program, although losing a few body parts in the process. In the meanwhile, he developed a well-deserved phobia of papercutters.”
But in addition to being a great judge, Jurgen is also a great person, and I believe all judges in the Belgian community can call him a friend. I’m looking forward to the next boardgames/fondue session at his place… altough it might actually be my turn to invite !”
Finally, Level 3 judge and BeNeLux Regional Coorginator, Richard Drijvers, concludes with this:
“I’ve always been very impressed with Jurgen’s insights. He was a true rising star when I started to get more interested in judging. And I must say, I was more than a bit jealous when Jurgen skyrocketed through the program, achieving many things in such a short time period. The impressive thing is that Jurgen continues to shine. Luckily for all of us he shares this light with the rest of us. Jurgen has been paramount in keeping the Belgium judge community alive and kicking. I hope he continues to provide us with such a good role model.”