^ Here, here, BGWFamily!!!
Edit: I totally forgot to mention that when I saw the picture CK posted with the times, I laughed out loud and woke my husband up!! "GASPARICH Fine Italian Chocolates" in the big heart box in the picture on the left! HAHAHA! Irony really hits my funny bone...
Nora, SDG, Lostcause, BGWFamily, thank you for your responses. I feel very enlightened to what has been going on in the park... Things I'm sure some of you have known about, or seen coming, but could not post out of decency and respect. It is so disappointing to find out that this man and the people who bow to his whims are running the park into the ground. Of course, I still think that this is just a symptom of a bigger problem. Everyone has a boss. (Except Hitler...) everyone has someone to hold them accountable. Those who are higher up than SG have a responsibility to make sure he is in check and is running the park properly. They have also failed.
When I read Nora's post about guests sitting out in the hot sun without so much as an annoucement for THAT long, I kept thinking, "This would NEVER happen at Disney." In fact, I'm pretty sure if they had to wait that long to scrape a show together, Disney would have sent some character or cast member out there to tell jokes or entertain the guests while they waited.
Yes, I know BGW is not Disney. Doesn't do as much business as Disney. Doesn't have the same man-power as Disney. But they COULD strive to have the same corporate culture as Disney. They COULD value their employees so much that they didn't walk off before a show. They COULD value their guests so highly that even if an employee walked, they immediately put on some kind of show, or made a personal apology to the guests, and maybe even offered a free drink or 10% off merch or some other consolation. They COULD have a PLAN for their money, so that they don't have to close their shows and attractions halfway through the season. But they have chosen not to. They have chosen to value money over the guest experience. They have chosen mediocrity. They have chosen to allow the declining standards of the park to take them down a notch, from one of the most beautiful family THEME parks this country has to offer... To just another amusement park. Just another place with roller coasters. There is a reason people fly from all over the world to see Disney World. And it's not just the rides. IT IS THE EXPERIENCE. And that starts with what happens BEHIND the scenes. That starts with how you train and value your employees. It starts with a drive for EXCELLENCE, instead of PROFIT. When you are excellent, money is a by-product. When your sole purpose is profit... The guest experience WILL suffer. And it drives people away. It kills brand loyalty. It divides and alienates your fan base. It breaks my heart to see what BGW COULD be in the right hands. In good, honest, hard working hands. And the saddest part about it, is that at one point in time, they were heading in that direction! I remember growing up in that park and thinking just how magical it was. How employees made me smile and I truly felt like I was transported to Europe! (An even awesomer version of Europe, that had roller coasters abound and yummier food, and certainly was easier and quicker to walk across.

) I remember a time when I didn't go to BGW for several years... Then I got married, and moved to MD. My husband and I could have gone to Six Flags. Cheaper, closer. But I insisted on BG, I didn't want to go to just any amusement park. We honeymooned in Williamsburg and have spent a lot of our married life in BGW! and he was blown away. He grew to love it like I loved it, like an old friend. I remember thinking BG was the closest thing to Disney in the area. Not anymore. And it pains me to think that the park may never bounce back from this. I don't know if it will ever be the way it was when we all loved it most. I just don't see anybody willing to step up and make the serious desperate changes that must be made to save the park.
Wow... Sorry guys for all that. I guess I just had a Zach moment while I was writing that. Like someone threw a rock through the beautiful stained glass in the Festhaus, and I can see my perception of the park (like a life long friend) shatter into tiny pieces. *sigh* I have a trip planned for CT this Christmas. Then, I think I'm going to be DONE with the park for a while.