My friend, magician Jeff Christensen, has been nominated for an award, and I think he’s eminently deserving of it.

Please take a moment to vote for him here.

Some background. A decade ago, Jeff lost his young son Jonah to an unforeseen medical condition. Like most people, I can’t even imagine going through a tragedy like this, or what I would do afterward. But Jeff utilized his performance and magic skills to create something amazing – an annual fundraiser called A Magical Evening, held each year around Jonah’s birthday, and honours his  memory by raising money for a different children’s charity each year. 

This year, he started the Jonah Christensen Memorial Scholarship, an annual award of $1000 to be given to one student each year to help fund their post-secondary studies.

Now, the website Canada’s Magic has created an “Inspirational Canadian Magician of the Year“ award. Nominations came from the site’s readers, and of course Jeff’s name was swiftly added to the nominees list.  It’s nothing fancy, there is no physical award or cash prize, it’s just an honour bestowed by Canada’s magicians on one of their colleagues. That alone makes it very meaningful.

I’ve shared a stage with Jeff, know how generous, kind and funny he is, and am impressed by the wonderful work he and his family have done to fund great causes and spread joy and wonderment through magic and performance. So I am happy to spread the word about this award. Not only because he richly deserves it, but also because anything that helps spread awareness of the positive work he is doing is a good thing. 

(Jeff’s story also hits close to home for me, as Jonah attended the same elementary school as my own little boy Max – and a whimsical tile mosaic of a chameleon, created to honour Jonah, is on the grounds of the school.) 

So please, give Jeff your vote. Thanks!

Further reading:

Celebrate the Child website
Jeff Christensen’s site, “Magical Educator”