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Creative Collector Willy, nilly, and silly- Lisa Yee has almost every piece of Winnie the Pooh memorabilia you could possibly imagine. "It all began with the first Pooh Bear I got when I was seven from Santa Claus," she reminisces. Thirty-five years later, Yee's assortment has grown to over 2,000 individual pieces, making it the second largest Pooh collection in the United States "I grew up in Los Angeles, so naturally we went to Disneyland at least a couple of times a year. Each time I was allowed to choose one thing, and it was always another Pooh," says Yee. "I didn't even know I collected Poohs until one day I looked around and thought 'Whoa . . . there are sure a lot of these things!'" While most collectors may keep their treasures locked away, Yee is open and willing to share her Pooh Bear paraphernalia with interested parties. "Once or twice a year [I open my home to] classes from New School of Orlando or Park Lake Presbyterian Child Care [to] tour the Pooh Room when they study Pooh at school." In addition to hosting tours to small children, her collection has been profiled in national and international magazines, and Yee has spoken at a Disneyana convention and written about collecting Poohs for magazines. Yee claims that her collection is comprised mainly of Pooh Bears, but "if there is something unique about the other characters, I'll collect them." Her prized possession from the collection is an exceptionally rare piece. "My husband, Scott Feldmann, made me a Pooh one year for Christmas. Every time he bought me one, I'd say, 'I already have that one.' So he made one [for me]. It's one of a kind and special because it came from him," gushes Yee. What's the downside to be surrounded by Poohs? Yee admits that they don't inspire her to get any work done, "It is a distraction because whenever I have writerÕs block, I start looking up Poohs on eBay." Even with the freshly renovated Pooh Corner store over at Disney's Marketplace, Lisa Yee has retired from adding any new figures to her collection. If she does acquire a new find, it's usually an older, more rare piece. Yee's future plans for the collection don't include selling it off. She says, "I intend to keep the collection. However, it is willed to the White River (Ontario) Pooh Museum." That's one serious collector. Winnie the Pooh isn't the only thing you'll find in abundance in Yee's household and office. "I also collect children's books, snow globes, and other toys and keep them in my office. I'm writing children's books now and being surrounded by toys keeps me young. Last week, my five year-old Benny said, 'Mommy, how come my toys always end up in your office?'" It would be a safe assumption to say that Lisa Yee is an avid supporter of collections in general. "I think it is wonderful and fun! Plus it's something you can do with your kids!" says Yee. So, what makes it a collection? Yee states authoritatively, "I think people start out liking something and just start accumulating them. Then when they have more than three, and start really seeking them out, it officially becomes a collection. However, I just made that up." POOH UPDATE Lisa's Winnie-the-Pooh collection is now on loan to the White River Winnie-the-Pooh Museum, in Ontario, Canada.
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