Host with the Most: Larry at Woodhaven Glass

One of our beloved hosts have been secretly working on a custom Humanitix lamp in his glassblowing workshop for the past few months! To do justice to this story, let us start from the beginning...

Larry at Woodhaven Glass

In 2024, Larry Zapf moved his glassblowing studio and shop from Horseshoe to Brevard, with hopes of expanding his business in larger quarters. However, disaster struck with the arrival of Hurricane Helene, a deadly and devastating tropical cyclone that caused widespread catastrophic damage across the Southeastern US in late September 2024.

“We had very little store or shop damage resulting from the storm. Our problem is that people are not out shopping and there are no tourists coming to the area. We depend on both to run our business.”

Larry at work (Photo by Colby Rabon)

After the hurricane, Larry turned adversity into action and used his events to do even more good — turning his passion for glassblowing into a force for change. He shares the love for his craft by teaching students at his workshops and classes.

"Once people know I’m here, we should be able to survive this very serious downturn in our economy and the devastation caused by the recent hurricane. This is not an easy time."

Keeping the torch lit - in his studio, Larry creates post-Helene. (Photo by Colby Rabon)

Larry & Humanitix

When Larry moved over to Humanitix, he was apprehensive as he didn't think he would get the support he needed to make the transition. Luckily, the Humanitix team didn't let him down, and wowed him with support that went above and beyond.

In December, the Humanitix team wanted to get behind Larry so we gave him a shoutout on socials, in hopes that it'd help spread the word about his events. Half a year later, he's still going strong with regular glassblowing classes for beginners and hobbyists.

Students learn to create basic forms like oil lamps, pumpkins, and bowls as a way to familiarize themselves with basic glassblowing procedures before advancing to more complex forms. (Photo by Colby Rabon)

Humanitix & Larry

At Humanitix's annual offsite retreat, there is a tradition where we dress as our favorite event or host on the Humanitix platform on party night. One of our Account Managers, Avery, has been working closely with Larry on supporting him and his ticketed events.

Avery was inspired by Larry's resilience and dedication to his craft, and decided to dress up as Larry at the 2024 US retreat. How did she do?

Enter: a secret lamp

Knowing how much Avery and the team adored Larry, our Senior Accounting Manager Cynthia secretly contacted Larry and comissioned him to make a Humanitix lamp as a surprise. Yes, our team is made up of the sweetest and most thoughtful humans you will ever encounter on Earth.🥹😍🫶

This week, the lamp arrived at the Humanitix office in its full glory. Needless to say, the team were as happy as Larry to receive this (sorry, had to!).

This is a one-of-its-kind lamp that we will treasure forever. We love you Larry!

You can read more about Larry and Woodhaven Glass here, and check out his glassblowing classes for beginners and hobbyists.