Founders Badge

Everyone knows about the Hogwarts Experience, but do you know the history? The hard times? The good times? Well, after finally getting the chance to have the guts and ask, I found out what happened, how everyone started, and everyone’s thoughts. Well…just three people. Three very active members who are always around the site, helping everyone and anyone. Elfie, Raistlin, and Rigby. After asking nicely, I asked a few questions some of you maybe didn’t even know the answers to. I asked Elfie why she started the HE. I mean, who doesn’t want to know that? If not for her, do you think most of the people here would be your friends? She made it because there were many sites, but none of them had everything she liked. She wanted a site for her, and friends she met from other sites, to be able to experience a real, or almost real like, place that was based off Harry Potter. And, as you can tell, everyone as enjoyed it. Also, at first, she thought it would last a couple of months, but more and more people came and she became more hopefully. Three years later, still strong and striving, with many more years to go.

She was more then surprised when members started joining. And, like me, she started reading the books when the Goblet of Fire came out. She was hooked instantly after the first book. And as everyone knows…she loves Snape. Her first night making the site, she made house forums, events, classes, entrance hall and many more. Excitement and many other more emotions, even if they were bad, ran threw her veins as the site progressed during the faithful night. But now that she is retired, but not gone, she feels the HE will still strive and be going strong with our new Headmaster, Rastilin. Her and Amy did a wonderful job the last three years and hopefully, the site will keep going. And everyone knows Raistilin, or as he prefers, Rai. Believe it or not, he didn’t become head as I thought. He started out like everyone, a member. He became one of the crazy people barely a month before the first term ended. He became student of the month in August, even though he joined late July.

Slowly, he became perfect, Second head, Professor, head of House, Assistant deputy, then headmaster. Sadly, he never made Head Boy. His first reaction when becoming Head of Slytherin was his biggest pride and joy. He secretly had planned it, or more like his goal, but knowing Rai, it was his plan to become it and he was more then happy to make it. With becoming head master boosted his ego at a personal level. And if he didn’t make Head Master, he would still be helping Slytherin win points. Everyone should know he loves his points. When he first joined, he was amazed. He, like Elfie, had been trying to find a good Harry Potter site that resemblances Hogwarts in some way. He got more then he wished for when he joined. It had everything he wanted.

Also, he never doubted the site. He refuses to give up a dream. When asked if he knew the two retired heads before the site started, he didn’t. I was shocked. They seemed like they knew each other for years and according to him, he couldn’t live without them. He claims they were never sane to begin with, but neither was he. Also, with giving so many ideas, he cant even remember some of the ones he helped think of, except the Daring Chamber in the DADA classroom. Did any of you guys know he applied for Herebolgy. Could you imagine him doing that? He doesn’t seem like the type, but Astronomy and DADA seem more like his track. Believe it or not, he never thought of doing a class! Now…our Deputy Head. Rigby first took over potions when Mick, aka Severus Snape, decided to step down. And like everyone, she started as a first year.

Her friend, Agatha Black, introduced her to the HE, which I’m sure we are happy she did. When she finally got the chance to become head of Ravenclaw, she took it. As she claims, the smile on her face was fixed for a week! She said she thought she was hit with a smiling curse. And, like some of us, she doesn’t know how the purple hippo came to be. I’m afraid to go look for it myself….Like most people, she was worried that when the last book came out, the site would lose members. But why would faithful He’ers leave? We love this site and her and the other heads. Becoming Deputy Head was bittersweet for her. I guess, like me, thought the retired heads where going to leave the site forever. Thank Goodness they didn’t! The things she remembers that some members wouldn’t are making graphics for certain chapters of the HP books and Fashion show! So now you have it, from three members who this wonderful site!

The Retired Head and her cute baby:

Rai's first Avater:

Rigby's first Grpahic:

The Hogwarts Experience all started with another site, called HPFF (Harry Potter FanFiction). It was there that all the founding members, including the one whose idea started it all, met - Sharon, then known as elfbwillow, felt like making something new where she would be able to have fun with her new found friends, a place where the real Hogwarts Experience could be lived, and from there came the idea of creating this wonderful site. Most everybody they'd gotten well acquainted with in the HPFF chatroom followed, and soon the site was thriving, with new members joining in daily, requesting to be sorted, wanting to do homework and win housepoints for their house. She was obviously happy with the way things were going, and extremely grateful - she had never thought it would grow so fast! But she had plenty of help coming from all sides - her husband Mick, who was head of Slytherin house, and the friends she'd made not so long ago, Amy and Lisa (Swiftie), heads of Gryffindor, Lily, head of Ravenclaw, and Lisa (Flissie), Etta and Marie (yours truly), the Hufflepuff team. Time went by though, and as people grow older, interest sometimes fades a little, or life takes over. Sharon soon got pregnant and gave birth to the site's official little elf, Aimee, and taking care of a baby is obviously time consuming. Her love for HE and its members wasn't less than in the beginning, but as her life got a bit more hectic, she had to get even more help to run it, and soon, passing the torch over was the one thing to do. That's when Rai came into his reign of terror (alright, alright, he's still pretty cool and all).

Speaking of Rai, what to say about our lovely new Headmaster. Though he wasn't among the very first members, joining in July 2006 when the site had already been going for five months, he can obviously still be considered as a big part of the Hogwarts Experience. His climb to power was indeed a great and swift one, and he wasn't long to leave his mark by doing homework, entering challenges, competing in tournaments, joining the Quidditch team and basically doing everything to gain his house points. Thirst of power and a desire to win and prove himself was indeed strong in this one, and the fact that he even stayed past his first week, which occured back when everybody was going crazy with marriage and adoption, is saying something. Soon, his activity earned him roles that gained him a bit more power, starting with prefect, and slowly he climbed the ladder of success. It wasn't long before he'd gone through practically every single role he could, and today, he's still at the top of the list by being Headmaster, Head of Slytherin House and a teacher to two classes all in one.

Finally, there's Amber, a member that surely never expected to end up where she is now. Though she joined in the early weeks of the site's creation (March 2006), her interest for HE wasn't strong enough to pull her back in until June of 2006 came along. When her interest grew, however, it grew with a bang. She quickly found her way around the site, making friends to talk to and soon becoming the member with the most posts, due to her addiction to the games board. She was the very first to reach the Undergraduate level, on which she wouldn't be joined by anybody else for a little while. Though there came a time where her activity on the site lessened a little, there was only one term (in late 2008 - early 2009) in which she did not join her fellow Gryffindors as a top points earner. Her desire to always keep Gryffindor on top and her dedication to winning points for her house (*coughbeatingeverybodycough*) earned her various roles, until she was appointed as the Gryffindor Head of House. Even now, her ambition (*coughhardheadednesscough*) drives her to do as much homework, exams and various assignments as she can, and she claims Gryffindor will be the first house to have won the House Cup three terms in a row.

Sharon's meeting with other HE founding members


Rai's student of the month award (August 2006, one month after joining)


Amber's various top housepoint earner banners

Well done, you have recieved your badge plus 100 points.

Unfortunately you're still missing the 3 images requirement for this badge to be approved. Once you add the images I'll grade it.