On behalf of myself and the Pressenza staff, I would like to acknowledge the recent passing of Suzanne Gepp. Suzanne was instrumental in developing and doing graphics for two of the first NYC Humanist magazines, both of which were Pressenza prototypes in the 1990s – The East Village Avenues (1991 – 1994) and Hunter’s Eye, a Humanist publication at Hunter College in New York City (1994 – 1997).
Suzanne moved to Manhattan from California in 1989 and, with the help of local volunteers and a handful of other Humanists from outside the city, she put together a Humanist Center for Direct Communication in the East Village. Throughout the first half of the 1990s, the center was a hive for projects ranging from local arts events to nonviolent activist seminars and protests.
Suzanne’s dedication to nonviolent Humanism, which she was a proponent and practitioner of from the mid 1970s until the day she passed away (April 30th, 2025) was a beacon for those who knew her and those who came after her. Her considerable contributions catalyzed and inspired those who later formed various Humanist organizations and publications, Pressenza being one of them.
In fact, it was Suzanne Gepp who introduced me, personally, to New Humanism and the teachings of Silo (the founder of the Humanist Movement) in the early 1990s. For this and for her presence as a mentor to myself and others, I am forever grateful.
May she rest on Peace.
