I am devastated to learn from Leanne, a witch of The Salem Coven, of the passing of Shawn Poirier. I revisit a message I have always treasured from him:

This is what I awoke to today:At 2:59 AM, Shawn Poirier said...Greetings all, Myself and another Salem Witch are proud to say we actually had the Honor of meeting Mrs. Astor for an evening of decadent drinks and wicked conversation. It was a pure pleasure! Like a wicked autumn carnival. ( or should I say carnival of souls) the conversation hit with tilt a whirl camaraderie. With speed our conversation spun from the polite "first meet" chat which roller coasted into dizzying chatter, spiced up with words like, spell casting, Necromancy, "I would like a tequila shot with that," drag, nudity, and "Don't worry the bleeding with stop soon." Of course meeting Mrs. Astor was definitely the big E ticket experience! All in all meeting Alexis was the highlight of the evening. ( However the humpy beefy dancers in another local night spot did prove to be stiff competition!) Be that as it may, beauty won out over brute brawn. One of my witches and myself took the spent evenings "fun tally." The judgment ....One can see hunky dancers anywhere, but there is only ONE Mrs. Astor and she is in Miami. Thanks Mrs. Astor for making myself and the Salem Witches feel so very welcomed in Miami! Bette Midler has nothing on you! I hope to see you and your court in Salem for the Official Salem Witches Halloween Ball held this year at the Historic Hawthorne Hotel. Blessing to you all. I have to go for now, as the winged monkeys need to be fed. Shawn Poirier High Priest of the Salem Witches and new friend of the fabulous Mrs. Astor! For all the Halloween fun in Salem check out... www.witchesofsalem.com and www.festivalofthedead.com What will I wear to the ball? I threw out the Bathory gown just this year..... (Hmmm. I have to dig up THOSE photos.)

(Good Lord, be good to Shawn.)