Excerpts taken from “TEAM Naturist” article printed in 27.2 Nude & Natural.
Nicky Hoffman Lee – Nude & Natural Publisher & Managing Editor
NICKY HOFFMAN LEE was introduced to Naturism through Bonnie. “Bonnie and her sister Peggy were my neighbors and we’d gone to high school together. Peggy had worked for Lee and Bonnie was currently working for him when the three of us took Lee up on an offer to go on a nude cruise in 1982. There was a group of us that went, staff members and their friends, and the nudity didn’t bother me,” Nicky said.” I was with good friends and felt comfortable and we had a lot of fun.”
Hired on April 1, 1985, Nicky started in the mailroom and handled all of Lee’s correspondence but, “in an office this small, at some point everyone has done a little bit of everything,” she said.
Nicky blossomed in such an environment and as Lee entrusted her with more responsibility, her interest in business grew, as well as her commitment to TNS. “My husband was never thrilled with the idea of naturism, and he had to hire extra help whenever I went to a gathering. At the same time, the kids were grown and I started working on a bachelor’s degree and as it happens, Bob and I grew apart to where we no longer wanted the same things.”
While planning for a new future, Nicky wasn’t prepared for the news that Lee had Parkinson’s. “All of us were concerned about Lee but those of us who’d been here since the beginning also worried about the future of TNS.”
When Lee started shopping around for a buyer of TNS in 2001, Nicky, Margaret and then-editor Judi Ditzler stepped up to the plate. “Who better than the people who’d already been working there? We knew the ins and outs like the back of our hands. And while no one can replace Lee, we all studied under him and know his vision and goals.”
While the first five years have been rough, Nicky confirmed her decision when she and Margaret bought out Judi’s share of the business in 2005. “I can get caught up in a good book, and I enjoy time with my grandchildren, but this is where my passion is, here in this office, carrying on Lee’s work.”
Mark Storey – Nude & Natural Consulting Editor
MARK STOREY joined TNS in 1988, and began writing for N magazine in 1996. He has helped organize four TNSF Festivals, two clothing-optional jazz festivals, a naturist-related film festival, and a theatrical production about nude beaches. Storey is the author of Cinema Au Naturel: A History of Nudist Film (2003) and Cinema Au Naturel: A History of Nudist Film, 2nd ed., (2021), editor of Theatre au Naturel: A Collection of Naturist Plays (2005), and co-author of The World’s Best Nude Beaches and Resorts (2007). He devotes much of his time to writing and editorial assistance for N magazine.
“I like to view myself as one of TNSF’ top fans. The people associated with TNSF and N are fabulous to work with. I’ve learned much about the naturist community and its history through them, and about the many values of being and appearing fully human among friends, family, and others.”
When not writing for N or teaching philosophy at Bellevue College in Washington State, Storey enjoys clothes-free kayaking in the Puget Sound, free-hiking in the Cascade Mountains, and skinny-dipping in Washington’s many inland lakes.
Nancy Ormsbee – The Naturist Society Foundation’s Membership Manager
Contact her @ membership@naturistsociety.com
Carmen Hamm – Nude & Natural Advertising Manager
CARMEN HAMM, who oversees advertising, came on board in October 2002.
Born in Wisconsin Rapids, Carmen graduated high school and joined the Army, where she served four years. Stationed in Hawaii as a pre-press specialist, she enjoyed the camaraderie of her fellow soldiers. “It’s very similar to working here,” she said. “Everyone works together as a team and we see each other through the good and the bad, whether it’s a business or personal matter.”
Carmen later attended technical college and married. When her husband got a job in Fond du Lac and she worked in Neenah, the couple moved to Oshkosh. “It’s halfway between the two cities and that’s how we ended up here.” When TNS hired her to work with advertisers, create ads and do artwork, she was thrilled. “I was a computer imager before I came here and this job lets me be a lot more creative.”
Her office is a work of art, where family photos, colorful handmade drawings and other artwork decorate all four walls. “Obviously, I enjoy art but I also love to rollerblade and go biking, anything outdoors.”
Jan Grable – Nude & Natural Layout and Design
THE NEWEST TNS staff Jan Graber began working part-time at TNS in February 2014, bringing with her 31 years of experience working as a page designer for the local newspaper. The position evolved into full time, and now Jan spends her days creating the page layout for the magazine, as well as designing brochures and other printed materials for TNS and its adjuncts, NAC and NEF.
What she likes best about her job, she said, is that the page design rules are not as rigid as in the newspaper industry. “I can make every page different,” she said, “and be more creative.”
As the mother of a special needs child, body acceptance is not a new concept to Jan. A volunteer for Special Olympics for over 15 years, the unassuming Oshkosh native knows too well one shouldn’t judge another based on physical appearance. Like many new hires, Jan initially felt a little awkward looking at nude photos but that “passed quickly,” she said, and she has settled comfortably into her job.
When Jan is not training Special Olympians, she may be modeling in a fashion show fundraiser for the Elks Club or planning a chili cook-off at her church, two other organizations in which she has held longstanding memberships. While one wonders where she finds the time, Jan also enjoys going out the girls.
Margaret Thornton – Nude & Natural Publisher
MARGARET THORNTON started working at the Baxandall Co. in November 1971. “I was the first person Lee hired when he took over the business after the death of his father. Lee continued to run the business of selling marketing materials for propriety schools and colleges, but he had a lot of other interests as well, and started a quarterly magazine called The Green Mountain Quarterly. Each issue was devoted to a different topic; the fourth issue was about skinny-dipping and out of that grew what is now The Naturist Society.”
“Lee sold me on Naturism because he operated with the idea that it was a freedom people should have, that it was clothing-optional, and there was a choice involved. Whether someone chooses to exercise that freedom is up to them, but I feel strongly that they should have the right to decide.”
Margaret felt so strongly about the tenets of naturism that she became a partner in TNS in 2002. “I don’t understand why people are offended by something when they are not forced to be part of it. You may not like what occurs at a rock concert so you don’t go; you don’t try to shut down the concert.”