Susan Kaplan

Duties: Susan Kaplan oversees the staff of Phoenix Rising, supervising them and making sure all duties are fulfilled. She also functions as the chantry’s money manager, and in some cases a liaison when matters are not diplomatically sensitive. In many ways she might be seen as the mundane face of the chantry.

Prized Possession: Heart-shaped locket with pictures of her twin girls. The locket was a present from her husband, and all three were killed by a drunk driver decades earlier.

Problem: Susan has no family of her own, and has thrown her life into her work. No husband. No children. And no grandchildren. There is an entire area of her life that is empty, and she does not know how to deal with it.

Drive: Susan is working on creating a non-profit to bring art and music to low income children throughout Phoenix. Her daughters loved to draw and to dance, and she hopes to create something in their memory which will outlast her.

Pride: Susan has pulled together a good crew at Phoenix Rising, talented people who will go far in their chosen careers. These are people who can trust and support each other, are good at their jobs, and take pride in their work. Together they maintain the Phoenix grounds and help insure the chantry is running smoothly, leaving the Mages to pursue knowledge and enlightenment.

Relationship with the other Staff: Susan is the woman in charge. Although she is friendly with the others, she is not friends with the people she supervises. When the lines get blurred with the boss, people become uncertain about expectations. She takes her responsibility to the chantry and her people seriously and wants Phoenix Rising to be a place where people enjoy working. Kaplan understands that who one works with can be more important than what one does, so making sure the right people are hired is very important.

Relationship with the Mages: Susan keeps her relationship with the Mages of Phoenix Rising formal and as clearly defined as it is with her people. The Elder’s are clearly in charge and establish overall policy, and while she defers to the Adepts whenever possible, providing them full support, in the end Adepts can make requests which may or may not be acted upon.