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Deb Hoffmann (born March 27, 1965) who resides in Waukesha, Wisconsin is recognized by Guinness World Records as the having the Largest Winnie the Pooh and Friends Memorabilia Collection. In 2008 Hoffmann submitted her collection for adjudication to Guinness World Records and on January 17th received her first certificate for a collection totaling 3,891 unique items. The collection consists of items including clothes, jackets, watches, clocks, figurines, dishes, mugs, toys and plush stuffed characters. One plush in particular, a pre-Disney Piglet, was purchased from the daughter of actor Vincent Price.

The first time the collection was submitted to Guinness World Records it took nearly a year to locate and catalog all of the items around Hoffmann’s home. However, in deciding to keep her record current each year, her husband Gary created a database and app. The database allows her to keep track of each unique item and the app allows her to check the database while shopping so she doesn’t purchase a duplicate item as Guinness World Records only acknowledges uniquely different items.

Biography
As a child Deb Hoffmann lived in Milwaukee, Wisconsin. She remembers always having had an affinity for Winnie the Pooh receiving her first stuffed plush Pooh when she was two years old. It wasn’t until her twenties when the collection started to take on size.

In 1987 Deb married her college sweetheart, Gary. She many times refers to him as, "the best part of her collecting". Gary has not only supported Deb with her collecting but has also encouraged her and aided in her never ending search for unique items.

Besides the passion for Winnie the Pooh, Hoffmann has always been involved in activities that brought people together. Her first job after graduating from Carroll University (then Carroll College) in 1987 was running the marketing department for an insurance company where she developed programs to help agents locate new customers. After several years she then took that experience and went to work for an advertising agency in Pewaukee, Wisconsin where she honed her ability to develop marketing programs to promote businesses.

With technology becoming more prominent in companies, Hoffmann felt she needed to gain experience with computers and went to work for a variety of software companies.

As much as Hoffmann enjoyed the corporate world she always wanted to start her own company with her husband who was a software engineer. The timing was perfect when websites came into existence because the Hoffmanns were able to join their strengths of marketing and technology together and form TechAnalysts, Inc. a custom software and website design company. And, if that wasn’t enough, to balance their "desk time" they also started a mobile DJ company, A Special Request.

It is probably the comfort level that came from performing in front of people while DJing that prompted Hoffmann to volunteer to play Winnie the Pooh for Sears and Roebuck, who at the time, had a licensing agreement with Disney to sell Winnie the Pooh merchandise.

It is clear Hoffmann’s passion for connecting people through marketing, and music, explains why in 2009 she created a business networking organization called BIG Networking which stands for Business Introduction Group; a non-dues paying organization with the goal of connecting businesses to give and pass referrals to help each business grow their clientele.

In 1999 Hoffmann ventured to White River Canada to attend Winnie’s Hometown Festival. White River is the town in which Lt Harry Colebourn purchased a female black bear cub that would go on to become the inspiration for A.A. Milne’s Winnie the Pooh stories. Enjoying the festival so much, the Hoffmanns have returned to the festival each year since. When the festival committee learned that Hoffmann was the Guinness World Record holder for Pooh and Friends Memorabilia and that she and her husband Gary owned A Special Request, they asked her to become the honorary emcee of the festival. As continued support to the town "Where It All Began", Hoffmann has donated several Winnie the Pooh items to the White River Heritage Museum.

Over the years Hoffmann has been contacted by several media outlets to talk about her Guinness World Record collection including the show, My Crazy Obsession. Due to scheduling conflicts she never appeared on the show but it prompted her to create the website MostPooh.com which showcases her collection and is an outlet for Winnie the Pooh enthusiasts to share their stories. Because the website gives Pooh fans and collectors the ability to communicate with Hoffmann she receives emails every day from people looking to either sell their Pooh collectibles or find specific Pooh items to add to their collection. Once again, with the passion of helping people and her technology background, she created cartoonfreakboutique.com, a niche auction website for collectors of Pooh and cartoon memorabilia. Cartoonfreakboutique.com can also be used as a tool for non-profit organizations to raise money.

In 2015 Hoffmann followed a dream of participating in the World Pooh Sticks Championships. Pooh Sticks is based on a story in A.A. Milne’s The House at Pooh Corner. The event, run by the Rotary of Oxford Spires, moved to a new location at Cogges Manor Farm in Witney to accommodate the growing number of people participating in the contest. It is a fundraiser for the Rotary with proceeds going to charity.

At the Championships several media outlets, including the BBC Radio in Oxford,, That's Oxford TV , Oxford Mail and The Independent interviewed Hoffmann all amazed she made the almost 4000 mile trip to attend the festivities and follow her passion.

Hoffmann has also been recognized by RecordSetter, formerly known as Universal Record Database, as having the record for the Most "Winnie the Pooh and Friends" Shirts And Jackets In A Backyard.