On a holiday devoted to giving thanks, we are grateful to Marvel legend Stan Lee, creator of worlds and characters that will live on long after his passing. These are our employees' remembrances, artwork and thoughts about Stan Lee's legacy and significance to them.

Artwork by Jason Angelone, Designer

Meredith Hawes
Sales Manager

“When I was little, I was a DC kid. I was all about Batman. It wasn't until I worked at one of my first jobs at a small movie theatre in Seattle at 17 years old that I was introduced to the world of Marvel. As the new Tobey Maguire Spider-Man movie was about to released, a coworker schooled me on the whole Peter Parker backstory. I was intrigued. I saw it and was totally swept away by the story—the outcast-turned-superhero. I loved it. After that, I got pumped whenever a new Marvel movie came out, and the love grew even more after having kids. Both my boys must have dressed up as different versions of Spider-Man for several Halloweens. Hulk and Iron Man were close seconds, but Spider-Man wins with us. My older boy even occasionally wore a pair of fake glasses when he wanted to just simply be Peter Parker.

“I was lucky enough to be present for Stan Lee Day at Funko in 2015, a day that I think is safe to say went down in history as one of the best days at Funko ever. I brought my Spider-Man costume, not sure if I was brave enough to actually put it on for the picture, but as my turn in line for pictures grew closer, I said, ‘When will I ever get a chance for this again? I gotta do it!' I ran to the bathroom, changed and ran back out in time to surprise Stan and get a photo. I will never forget this moment.

“I got VERY Lucky a second time. In 2016, I was in NYC for Comic Con. I was out and planning on meeting some friends for dinner but had a ton of stuff with me I needed to drop off at my hotel first. I was already running late, and almost said screw it I'll just bring everything with me. But, I didn't. I decided to stop at my hotel and I am SO glad I did.

“I walked into the lobby, went straight for the elevator, pushed my button and waited. I looked over my left shoulder at the front door just as STAN LEE walked in. I froze. He walked right over to the elevator just as the door opened and into the elevator with me. How tempting it was to push all the buttons, Buddy the Elf style just for a little more time, but alas! Instead, I looked at him, smiled, and said, ‘Hi Stan! I work at Funko, the toy company, we met last year!' He smiled back, that famous twinkle in his eye, and I nervously asked for a picture and he so graciously replied, ‘Of course!' When we got to his floor I said, ‘Thanks so much Stan, you're the best!' to which he said, ‘My pleasure, darling.' I had butterflies for the rest of the night.

“My two boys were naturally SO envious I got to meet him, not once, but twice. So when he came to Emerald City Comic Con in 2017, I made sure to grab that photo op so they could get their turn to get a pic with him. So thankful I did that. We'll forever be a Marvel household, and we'll all be forever grateful for the world of fantasy and superheroes that Stan created. Naturally my love for him grew even more after meeting him in person—I can't say enough what a kind soul he was.”

Poppy Helt
Senior Packaging Designer

“I remember when he visited us back at the old office. This was basically a few hours before he was going to be at Emerald City Comic Con that year. He had a busy day ahead of him! There was a huge crowd of people around him, and yet he took time with every single person to make sure to have a conversation, a smile, to sign things and to pose for photos.

“I've been a huge X-Men fan since I was seven years old (in fact I have Psylocke tattooed on my leg) and meeting the creator of them? He did not disappoint! He was warm, welcoming of all of us nerding out and had a great sense of humor. At one point, he thanked me for holding a book for him to sign instead of just handing it to him. I know that may seem trivial but he was exceedingly patient, and never lost the idea to be kind to people and thank them, even for the little things, not taking things for granted. Anyway, it's not the most exciting experience, but it's one of my favorite celebrity meetings I've had in my life.”

Liz Lawson
Manager, Retail Store

“This moment will live with me for the rest of my life. I can't believe how blessed I was to meet such a legend. Not only was he kind, he had a great sense of humor.”

Michael Martin
Senior Designer

“I met Stan years ago at Comic Con. He was very friendly and accommodating considering the limited individual time he had with everyone that was there.

“I was not at Funko the day he was there but my coworkers were wise enough to grab my sample of the classic Daredevil that I had designed and had him sign it for me. It is one of my prized possessions.”

Elise Rainer
Quality Assurance Technician

“I will never forget the day that he was able to stop by the Funko Office when we were all still located back on Shuskan.”

Artwork by John Skewes, Senior Designer (@Skewesart)

Excelsior!