All of us at Montreal Fireworks were deeply saddened to hear of the passing of Paul McKinley of MagicFire on Thursday of this week. Paul was an innovator in the field of pyromusicals with his development of the MagicFire electronic igniter for shells - giving a level of precision that's unprecedented and which allowed for some unique effects. He will be sadly missed.

Sincere condolences to his wife Lucy.

http://www.currentobituary.com/member/obit/194163

From Roger Schneider:

Paul was a good friend and ardent supporter of the International Symposia on Fireworks, not only through his authorship and presentation of many valuable papers, his frequent service as a session chair, but also through his generous sponsorships. Paul and Lucy, through MagicFire, have strongly supported and made substantial contributions to the international fireworks industry. They have also actively participated as members in several fireworks organizations.

I would like to prepare a tribute to Paul for publication in several fireworks news services, and ask that should you have a personal remembrance of Paul you would like to share to please send it to me earliest. Please also forward this sad news onto others within our fireworks community. Because Paul accomplished so very much in his life, I want to make sure all know what a remarkable man he was. Paul epitomized the gentleman and scholar.

In the near term, please send any cards or letters of sympathy to Lucy McKinley at the MagicFire address below.

Ms. Lucy McKinley
MagicFire
PO Box 898
Natick, MA 01760 USA

Kindest regards,

Roger L. Schneider, Ph.D

President
Rho Sigma Associates, Inc.
4906 N. Idlewild Ave.
Whitefish Bay, WI 53217-5968 USA
(O) 414-332-0138
(C) 414-940-1193

rls@rhosigmass.com or rhosig01@aol.com

A Scientific and Engineering Consulting Firm Since 1974