|
|
Reprinted from The Repository, Canton, Ohio; February 10, 2002
Sue McCamish along with Dennis and Cindy Forney were interviewed by Lisa Reicosky of The Repository, Canton, Ohio.
Candy Covered Hobby
M&M's collectors just plain nuts over the sweet obsession
Sue McCamish lost 50 pounds in one year on an M&M's diet. But don't rush out to buy a one-pound bag of the candy to feed a fitness habit. Collectors, however, might want to keep reading. McCamish has been amassing M&M's Candies collectibles for about six years. A spare bedroom in her northwest Canton home is filled with M&M's items - stuffed characters, store displays, packages, dispensers, clocks, Christmas lights, cars, and lunchboxes. How does that translate to a 50-pound weight loss? McCamish loves her M&M's room so much, she parked her treadmill in the middle and is inspired to walk every day. She said the orange carpeted room with orange walls just makes her happy. "I don't know, maybe it's the kid in me," she said. McCamish decided several years ago she wanted to start collecting something as an outlet from stress in her job in the Timken Co.'s engineering department. She began collecting Beanie Babies, But soon decided it was more stressful than her job. She recalls women fighting over the stuffed animals and sending in their kids to get them. She remembers lunch-hour junkets to area stores for the latest editions and the rush to get back to the office. "It just wasn't fun," she said.
Then in 1997 she discovered an M&M Candies dispenser at a giant garage sale at the Stark County Fairgrounds, and an obsession began. McCamish feeds her habit through catalogs, Web sites, and retail department stores, but her favorite finds come from flea markets and garage sales. Working for an international business is a great way to obtain unique items, she said. Whenever a co-worker travels, McCamish usually gets an interesting foreign item for her room. Her favorite acquisition story comes at the expense of her boss, who tried to get on an airplane before Sept. 11 with an M&M clock and a package of roller bearings. A cautious baggage inspector kept the bag and detained the boss, who eventually convinced authorities he wasn't building a bomb. He flew home and the bag followed later. McCamish got the clock. She combines her M&M's collection with her love for NASCAR. A bright yellow M&M's car driven by Ken Schrader is a fan favorite. McCamish has jackets, model cars, posters, and several items autographed by Schrader. The NASCAR theme, she said, was a great way to get her race-fan husband, Brad, involved.
Oldest not antiques
Although M&M's were first sold in 1941, the marketing of M&M's characters and collectibles did not begin until early in the 1980's, so her oldest items are not antiques. Still, she estimates that she has about $6,000 invested in her collection. It would be impossible, she said, to estimate its worth. She hopes to find advertising and packaging that predates her collectibles. McCamish said that while some collectors might not want the market flooded with others collecting the same thing, she wants to encourage people to jump in. "I want to know. This is a fun thing to do," she said. And affordable too, she added. In the past, McCamish has sold and traded her extras at the annual community garage sale at the fairgrounds. It was here that she met other local collectors, such as Dennis Forney of North Canton. forney jpg Forney, a recent retiree of the Hoover Co. and an M&M's item collector for more than 11 years, said that while he enjoys looking at the stocked shelves of his M&M's-themed basement, it's the search itself that is most fun. So much so, that a recent trip home from Cincinnati took him and his wife Cindy from dawn until nightfall. Armed with a map of Wal-Mart stores, the couple hit every store searching for recently released M&M's Harley Davidson choppers. That day, they found 10 of the pint sized models, many of which they traded or sold for the purchase price to other collectors.
Expression worth it
Each great find is rewarded with what Forney's wife dubs the "I found it dance". He slaps his finger on his hand and playfully marches double time in place, a sight that always tickles her. She said she enjoys finding items for him just to see the look on his face. Forney said it's virtually impossible to keep up with the increased amount of items that Mars Inc. releases for collectors. "They bombed us," Forney said. "They say, 'Those people will buy it'". "And they do. We do. said his wife. It is difficult for him to choose a favorite item out of thousands, but Forney said if he had to choose it would be the two stuffed characters, the first items he got 11 years ago by sending in UPC codes to the company. Another would be the giant stuffed yellow M&M that is the source of one of his favorite stories.
Store contest
The former North Canton Apples store had a contest to win "Big M." Shoppers entered their names for a drawing. The Forneys, regular customers there, entered each time they visited. On the day of the drawing, Forney showed up in his favorite M&M's sweatshirt and was asked to do the honors. "I reached in and pulled out a name. 'It's me,' I said." "He deserved it," his wife added. Both Forney and McCamish helped organize a picnic for Ohio Collectors last May at Sippo Lake Park in Perry Township. Through the M&M Club, Websites and e-mails from other collectors, they find out what's new to acquire. Although they have seen the pictures and heard first hand accounts about it, so far neither has ventured to M&M's World on the Las Vegas Strip. "I'm afraid to go," Forney said.
| 
 |
