Ann Henderson Lichter (née Giffin)

(30 MARCH 1942 - 28 MAY 2024) Ann Henderson Lichter (née Giffin), 82, of Toronto, Canada, passed away on 28 May 2024 at the Shirley and Philip Granovsky Palliative Care Unit, Baycrest Hospital, Toronto, after a valiant battle with ovarian cancer and dementia. Following the birth of brother Peter in 1934 and sister Judith in 1937, Ann was born 30 March 1942 in Westmount, Quebec to Spencer Harrington Giffin (1898-1989) and Pauline Frances Campbell Giffin (1905-2000). She relocated with her family in the late 1940s to Sutton, Quebec, a move that coincided with Peter Giffin’s diagnosis of schizophrenia. Severely impaired for the remainder of his life, Peter showed extraordinary grace and courage in the face of adversity and was a constant source of inspiration to his family. Though Spencer Giffin ran a general store in Sutton, his training was in engineering. To pursue a professional opportunity, Spencer moved the family to Newark, New Jersey for two years in the mid 1950s. After briefly attending Mount Allison University (Sackville, New Brunswick), Ann returned to Montreal for the next five years before relocating to New York City in September 1965. Within a week of her arrival in Manhattan, she was introduced to the man who would become her husband of 57 years, broadcast producer and advertising executive Adrian Paul Lichter (1941-2023). The couple was married on 17 December 1966 at Grace Anglican Church, Sutton, Quebec. Their only child, Peter Campbell (neé Lichter), was born in New York City on 09 October 1972. Residing in the Carnegie Hill neighbourhood on Manhattan’s Upper East Side, the family enjoyed many years as second homeowners in the Berkshires region of western Massachusetts. Following her marriage, Ann was employed by Condé Nast at American Vogue magazine in 1967. During her four years at Vogue, Ann was witness to some of the most preeminent designers and fashion influencers of the day, under the auspices of legendary editor Diana Vreeland. Ann’s extraordinary physical beauty and keen interest in fashion did not go unnoticed. Carrie Donovan, Vogue editor (and later editor of Harper’s Bazaar and The New York Times Magazine) selected her to model in an editorial spread for the magazine’s August 1968 issue. The caption under her photograph reads, “Ann Lichter… in the waif look… irresistible." For the first twelve years of her son’s life, Ann chose to be a stay-at-home mother. She returned to the workforce in her early 40s at advertising agency McCann Erickson. She then spent a decade in Human Resources at luxury retailer Tiffany & Co. before her fifteen-year corporate tenure with the Estée Lauder Companies as Director of Staffing. Like her husband, Ann was a lifelong tennis player and a “dyed-in-the-wool” Democrat with a keen interest in politics. In retirement in Toronto, CNN, MSNOW, The New York Times, fashion publications, her beloved bichon frisé Beau and her family were constant companions. Karith Foster, her former colleague at Estée Lauder, remarked in an online tribute: "Ann didn't play, and she wasn't about to be played. She was a realist. She cared and was there to help, but she was also keen on bringing levity to any situation as the dogmatic, pragmatic woman that she was… She was a source of comfort and a haven of really sound advice. She would say at least 3 to 4 times a week: Girls, it's just lipstick." Ann was predeceased by her parents; her husband of 57 years, Adrian Lichter, of Toronto; and brother Peter Campbell Giffin (1934-2010), of Pugwash, Nova Scotia. At the time of her death, Ann was survived by her sister, Judith Harrington Giffin (1937-2025), of Toronto. She is now survived by her son, Peter Campbell, of Toronto. He is enormously grateful for the exceptional care his mother received at Baycrest Hospital in her final months.

Ann Henderson Lichter (née Giffin)

May 28, 2024