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Very soon after I learned of Lanie’s death, my theatre gals presented me with this, formerly green, azalea bush to offer me a loving token of their caring and friendship. In remarkably Lanie-esque form, within 24 hours, this little tree exploded into outrageous PINK!  It honestly overwhelmed its own branches with the birth of beautiful pink blossoms.  The next day, COVID be damned, Molly, (Elena’s Mom) and Patti (Elena’s aunt and my Mom) joined me at my firepit to eat, drink, talk, laugh, cry, and  mourn.  An alarmingly enormous flaming ember rose from the fire, demanding attention as it beautifully and a little dangerously floated across a span of 50ft to extinguish itself on my Lanie tree.  Well. That is some pageantry, Lanie!  Thank you for visiting us. We love you. (I think she likes being guarded by Mary in the halfshell and a Gargoyle!)

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Over the years, Easter became a favorite time to visit because it is a quieter, more reflective “Holiday”, easier to have more meaningful 1:1 conversations with our little families. Easter is rife with opportunities for creative shenanigans!  I cherish the years of truly ridiculous easter egg coloring with you and your beautiful offspring.  With that much talent in the room, we of course had to expand to cookie decorating to accommodate it.  And we had to be patient, while you channeled the Easter Bunny to hide eggs in the perfect bunny approved spots.

This Easter, there was no traveling, and we were left to our own creative skill set without your spark. We have been taught well and honed our skills with you over the years...but you were missing and you were missed this year. I still regret not zooming in you and your offspring.   You were in our hearts and minds and I  wish I had been better about letting you know that.

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These are just a few of the gifts I have recieved over the years from my dear cousin. The crazy mirror has hung on my wall for years, the sculpture is a tribal vase that professes to perpetuate love, The frame is made from pounded orange juice cans, detailed with nail tappings for design, the lighthouse, so cherished was turned into an actual working lamp, and the chain holds a tiny charm, with a tiny magnifier, and inside tiny letters with the larger than life word STRENGTH revealed. My dear cousin, I wish you could look in that mirror and see the beautiful and brilliant soul we all saw, drink from the vase and know the love we all feel, embrace the pure joy encased in the frame, see the light welcoming a weary wanderer home, and know you have the STRENGTH to weather through it all. We know you tried, we will never know the intensity of your journey, I like to think you did finally find home, even though I am selfish and wish it wasn't so far away.  And the saxophone?? Well that is a thrift store gift someone gave me, that I always meant to regift to you!! Ha, you would have loved that! But I couldn't, because everytime I looked at that saxophone on my mantle, I thought of my brilliant cousin with the beautiful soul and so many amazing memories and times shared that meant so much.. Yankee Doodle on your shoulders, A Pair of New Glasses, First Night Parade recruits.... ( I wish so much I had told you that!!). I will forever cherish all the gifts from Glenn, and mourn the loss of those never to be received.
Peace my dear cousin, Love Marcy

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H was the Philosophy Club faculty sponsor for the 2003-2004 school year, and hosted club movie nights in the black box. When we watched 'My Dinner with Andre' on H's recommendation my teenage mind was like "woah,  I'm gonna have deep dinner conversations like this someday when I grow up".  I made this dance for H, partly inspired by dialogue from the movie, and to say thank you, farewell, and, I'll remember you always.  https://youtu.be/IpkL8_706i8

She helped me design these club t-shirts in the hope that other students would be drawn in by the mystique and ask "what does your shirt mean?" and then we'd tell them about the club. I felt so special that H took the time to scheme and dream with me about Philosophy Club, which I felt so passionately about.  I lost the shirt years ago...the one pictured below is a reprint I had made. This object reminds me of her.  - Amanda L.

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In the 2000 production of 'Up the Down Staircase' Hochkeppel had this "poignant chair" for when a character needed the world to drop away so they could monologue. This memory is indelible for me -- any and all chairs I see standing solo in the center of a room are forever poignant chairs to me. - Amanda L.

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H... I’m sorry it took me a minute to write to you. I was bummed to find that I didn’t really have any pictures of us together and I wanted to say something truly from the heart. I did however find this tonight and it’s so much more precious than a photo of us could ever be. It’s your words that you wrote about me and my time working with you in Running Dog Productions. I can’t express enough my love and gratitude for you for believing in me and trusting me the way that you did. I will keep this forever. Thank you for being my number one fan and giving me wings. Till we meet again. Chelsea Sorensen 5-6-7-8!

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One day in class we were practicing pantomimes, each student chose a task to perform and one of the girls chose to shave her legs. So she starts, quickly pulling an invisible razor up her leg. She did this only two or three times before H stops her and says “Wait, wouldn’t you do that more slowly? Aren’t you afraid of cutting yourself?” All the girls in the class immediately chimed in at the same time “Nooooooo!” “Do you know how long that would take??” “If you nick yourself, so what, rather that than be late for school”.
H was fascinated. H positively looked nonplussed. It was hilarious. We all ended up laughing for a solid minute! Sufficed to say, nearly every time I shave my legs, I think of H.

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I had worked with Lanie on two prior shows, but didn't appreciate her range until I cast her as "Nicholas Devize" in "The Lady's Not for Burning" (2000 - Elden Street Players).  With the addition of one prop, in this case a set of fake bad teeth, she was completely immersed into her character.

The teeth, of course, led to other hilarious choices (i.e. would never enter a room normally - usually through a window).  Every moment she was on stage was riveting and hilarious.  The audiences and critics loved her, with the WATCH judges awarding her their inaugural "Outstanding Supporting Actor" honor.

It was so much fun to work with Lanie on that show.

-Todd H.

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Memories of her always make me smile. She was kind and full of talent. I regret not keeping closer and more in touch. But I believe she knew she was loved.

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Elena loved the performance artist Spalding Gray, and turned me on to him as well. We watched his recorded performances, and Elena had this book even before I met her. Spalding was incredibly talented, but also battled depression in his life, and ultimately committed suicide. I remember how affected Elena was by that, how sad she was that this brilliant person couldn't win against the demons in his own head.

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Right after Elena and I were married, and shortly after Elena started teaching at Stonebridge (2000), Eli Wiesel, Holocaust survivor and author of Night, came to speak at SBHS. This photo was taken of Eli standing underneath a puppet Elena had made of Hamlet's father (a ghost), with the lines (from Hamlet), "I could a tale unfold whose lightest word would harrow up thy soul." The meaning of that, paired with seeing Elie Wiesel standing there, still reverberates around my soul today.

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H was a frequent dinner guest and could always find an opportunity for joy. One winter, I had joked that I had been missing my eyeglasses for a few weeks but had found them in the hinge of the oven, and the lenses melted. H didn't hesitate for a second before using them as a hilarious new prop. There were the times that many of us would sing in the music room, H on the sax. H would always knock his head on one of the hanging light fixtures when he entered the kitchen. There was a party where H came in glitter and it got everywhere! Once a baked dish (pyrex) exploded in the kitchen and H took it all in stride -- of course there had to be a change of plan. Always appreciative to join our table, I always loved cooking for H. -- Chris Ann Matteo