NYLine Day 9: Your Thoughts Dwell On Your Mother...
Posted by Steve on
Number of people currently in line: 18
Mother's Day is always a little bittersweet on the line; many have to be away from 54th Street to honor their moms, and most of us who are in front of the Ziegfeld have to find a way of celebrating long distance. This year, though, we had a few mothers at the line, where they found fresh-cut roses and tea waiting to help celebrate their day.
While every mother is special, a few deserve extra mention. The first one is our very own "Line Mom," Lynne Lipton. If you haven't met Line Mom yet, be sure to introduce yourself. She's the one with the camera, wrangling people to go pick up the latest food donation she's secured for line members from a nearby business. Since 1999, she's been one of our most vocal supporters, making sure all her "kids" are warm and well fed. When we heard she'd been through some rough times over the past couple years, we were worried that she might have a diminished presence this year. Happily, though, Line Mom has been an active part of this line - a turn of events for which we're all particularly grateful.
Then there's Suzanne Sousa's mom. Mother's Day takes on double significance for her this year, because today is the date when she gave birth to our beloved P.R. Princess. If Suzanne isn't always around the line, it's because she is extremely active in the community, mentoring kids and generally trying to make this world a better place. So thanks, Mrs. Sousa - you've raised a terrific daughter, and we wouldn't be here without you!
If you saw the massage chair on 54th Street today, then you know a special shout out has to go to Jan Kent, Lauren's mom. Jan offered 10-minute massages for a $15 donation to the Starlight Starbright Children's Foundation. As the recipient of one of those massages, I'll gladly go on record and proclaim her a miracle worker. But she's not just a super massage therapist - she's also a super "Star Wars" mom. She indoctrinated Lauren at an early age, taking her to "Return of the Jedi" at a drive-in movie theater when Lauren was just a wee tyke. Jan was also an active presence on the 2002 line, and she's been extremely supportive of Lauren's involvement with NYLine this year. Without Lauren's involvement, we wouldn't have the awesome registration site that she and Jon Simantov put together. So next time you check your point totals, be sure to say a silent "thank you" to Jan for passing the "Star Wars" love to a new generation.
Finally, let's hear it for all the "Star Wars" moms out there - the ones who drove us around town looking for that R2-D2 action figure, who advanced our allowance so we could pick up the soundtrack to "The Empire Strikes Back," or who let us stay out past curfew so we could sneak in one extra viewing of "Return of the Jedi." Thanks, Mom! Happy Mother's Day. And May the Force be with you!
View today's events in our Photo Gallery!
EDIT: Amit here - I just wanted to point out that Steve posted this fantabulously perfect article at 11:38 PM. Star Wars!
Also, I would like to add a few more sentiments, first seconding everything that Steve said, with an extra special hug going out to Line Mom from my side of the galaxy to hers. She knew I was sick and brought me an apple today on the line. I knew she was sick and only had my love to offer.
In addition, I think a special mention should be made for our own much-loved Jewels, who not only manages full time NYLine organization, a part-time job, and the amazing 24/7 mothering to the brilliant A.J. Green, she does it all from the outer rim in Pennsyltucky. Oh yeah, and she's pregnant too. Her dedication to the line is only superceded by her commitment to the parental order.
A few other mentions who should be brought up by name are John Green's mother and grandmother, Martha and Mar Mar, as well as Jewels' mom, Holly - all can hold their own in any Star Wars discussion that may break out on the line. Also, Mrs. Spell is no slouch either, plus she lets her husband play with us (and our website) at all hours, and she serves as our jedi librarian, helping to archive the old sites! JediRob's mom and sister dropped by today to see his second home, Michele's mother has always been a great help to us, and I thank Karen's mom for checking my grammar all the way from Canada!
And of course there are some fantastic Member-Moms out there, including Monica Maslowski, whose...let's just say rambunctious daughter Samantha has become a line mascot. Erika Bustos brought her son today, and he was polite and so much fun - in other words, he was nice men. I'm sure there are many others in the NYLine family, and we salute you all! I repeat Steve's thanks to every single one who have shared and helped shape their kids into great Star Wars fans and great people!
