April 8, 2004 My friend Pete of MushroomVillage.com received a terrible phone call - his good friend Suzanne Lipschitz, founder of the Smurf Collectors Club Intl., passed away April 7, 2004 after a long battle with brain cancer. Many of you knew Suzanne, or knew of her - the rest of you should know just what Suzanne did for this hobby you enjoy so much. Suzanne was one of those collectors who was bit by the bug after building a collection for her child. Her quest to build her son's collection and identify variations during the early 80's led to numerous friendships that came together under the banner of the SCCI in the mid 1980's. For 15 years she shared her passion with thousands of members around the world, documenting and providing information about the little details that may seem trivial to others, but make Smurf collecting so enjoyable for all of us today - musters, raws, promos, markings, color and mold variations, you name it - finally throwing in the towel after 15 years of uninterrupted publication of the quarterly SCCI newsletters. These newsletters comprise the most complete and valued accounting of Smurf happenings during this period. Without her work, there would be an enormous gap in Smurf knowledge today - and the hobby simply would not exist as it does.
When Pete decided to take his wife's collection to a new level, he approached Suzanne to propose a "you-scratch-my-back, I'll-scratch yours" deal to advertise one another's Smurfy enterprises. She invited him over and, after much guidance, MushroomVillage.com was born (it was known as eSmurfs.com back then, before IMPS got involved - she warned him about them!) Suzanne expressed to him a desire to pass on the torch, so that she could spend more time with her family - but at the same time her fierce devotion to her Smurf family was amply evident - she made him promise, again and again, that he would take care of her members - that he would be courteous, prompt, factual, and offer nothing but the finest quality to her members, who were apparently very important to her. She did not take this lightly - not just anyone would do, and he spent months convincing her that his heart was in the right place, and that he would do right by her members. Finally Suzanne gave him her blessing and referred her membership to him in her final newsletter. She minced no words when it came to making sure he delivered on his promise! She was always in the wings, watching everything he did, providing priceless feedback and advice, making sure he dotted every "i" and crossed every "t." As we lost Suzanne, so we lost one of the most impressive walking Smurf encyclopedia's this world has ever known. I regret deeply that she has been taken from us, especially now, as we are surely on the cusp of the Smurf revival we have waited so many years for. How she would have reveled in their return! Perhaps she and Peyo can now witness this spectacle together! On this very sad note Pete wanted to assure all of you that he holds his promise to Suzanne as firmly as ever, and let you know he is now acting as steward of the entire SCCI collection. Suzanne worried about him making this public, as she feared it might be interpreted as her "pulling out" of the hobby. Of course, nothing could be further from the truth. If Suzanne had anything to say about it, she would be serving us still, but alas, we cannot control everything in this world. Situations dictated that Suzanne pass her torch and Pete was honored to have been chosen as her successor. Suzanne has put into Pete's hands the entirety of the SCCI holdings - this includes every piece of Smurfabilia owned by the SCCI, the SCCI archives, originals and raw materials for all of the SCCI publications and newsletters, SCCI contacts and suppliers, the complete member list - everything. Indeed, the Smurf room he has been working on for so long was designed around these materials - so that he could properly preserve, display and have easy access to all her resources as he continues to serve all of you. How bad did he feel that he was not able to complete it early enough to share with her? He wanted her to see how serious he was about preserving all she had done for us. Well, regret will get him nowhere. Please everyone, spend a moment today remembering Suzanne. If you did not know her, please understand how important she was to this hobby you enjoy. It is no understatement to say that she, more than any other, is responsible for the state of the hobby as it is today. So much of the information we "experts" share really comes from her mouth - she laid the foundation much of the hobby is built on today. Pete is told very often that he does so much for the hobby. Pete said "Well let me tell you something, I sat on the shoulders of a giant." Also he said "Suzanne, thank you so much for all you did for me. You were the best mentor a Smurf could ever ask for. I will miss you dearly. Say "hi" to Peyo for me :) " --- Suzanne's viewing was held at the Massapequa Funeral Home in NY, in her hometown and SCCI headquarters for 15 years. Pete very regrettably was unable to attend but he arranged for a floral display to be delivered to the funeral home reading "From Peter & all your Smurfy Friends at MushroomVillage.com - The world is a Smurfier place because of you, we will miss you dearly."
This article originally appeared on MushroomVillage.com article pages that now no longer exist, and it exists here with permission from Pete of MushroomVillage.com and is copyright of MushroomVillage.com
