A Sad Day For Transformers fans: TFmaster of Transtopia.com Has Passed Away

Sunday, March 11th, 2007 4:40AM CDT

Categories: Site News, People News, Transtopia
Posted by: Air Commander Starscream Views: 55,518

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I regret to have to bring forward this sad news, but we have lost one of our own early this morning. I just received a phone call from Ryan where he told me Bill Koshorek (aka TFmaster) has passed away from a heart attack he had on Thursday. This is sad news indeed as he was only 31 years old and leaves behind a loving wife and son who is only 8 years old.

For those of you who do not know who Bill was, he was a customizer and webmaster of Transtopia. This website was the best resource for Transformers kitbash, and is filled with unbeleivable talent, some of which was his own creations. He also was a moderator here on Seibertron.com and helped out with the Kitbash area of the site.

Our prayers go out to his family as they deal with this difficult time which is now ahead of them. Please take a moment whether it be of silence or a prayer. He will be missed.

--------------------------

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Edit from Ryan: Lauren has asked me to put together a collection for Bill (aka TFMaster) for his funeral and for their son. Whatever money you can donate will go toward his funeral and their son. Please click on the button below to donate. Your donations are greatly appreciated.

Click here to make a donation ...

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Re: A Sad Day For Transformers fans: TFmaster of Transtopia.com Has Passed Away (49130)
Posted by Air Commander Starscream on March 11th, 2007 @ 5:06am CDT

I would just like to say that my prayers go out to his family. I feel so sorry for them, especially his son who is only 8 years old. It's going to be a long and difficult road, but they will get through this.

I only met him once and that was at last years Botcon, he was a nice guy and his family was very nice. I wish I could have known him a bit better.

RIP TFmaster.

Re: A Sad Day For Transformers fans: TFmaster of Transtopia.com Has Passed Away (49132)
Posted by Tigertrack on March 11th, 2007 @ 5:07am CDT

It is truly sad. No matter how much the fandom will miss him, the loss of a father for a young child is even sadder.

RIP Bill.

Re: A Sad Day For Transformers fans: TFmaster of Transtopia.com Has Passed Away (49139)
Posted by Burn on March 11th, 2007 @ 5:17am CDT

Well ... shit.

Re: A Sad Day For Transformers fans: TFmaster of Transtopia.com Has Passed Away (49147)
Posted by Anonymous on March 11th, 2007 @ 5:30am CDT

I have to say THIS REALLY SUCKS. Tfmaster was not only THE greatest kitbasher, he was also the very reason and inspiration for me to start kitbashing. I only hope that a donation fund is put up for his family.

Re: A Sad Day For Transformers fans: TFmaster of Transtopia.com Has Passed Away (49149)
Posted by Seibertron on March 11th, 2007 @ 5:31am CDT

I'm still trying to get ahold of Lauren (TFmaster's wife). She emailed me about 2 hours ago regarding Bill's death. She wants me to get ahold of Don Figueroa. Can someone send me his email address so that I can pass it along to her? Please send it to me via PM or via the contact form at http://www.seibertron.com/contact/index.php

Thank you,
Ryan

Re: A Sad Day For Transformers fans: TFmaster of Transtopia.com Has Passed Away (49151)
Posted by TENIME_art on March 11th, 2007 @ 5:34am CDT

F**k. I am speechless...

Re: A Sad Day For Transformers fans: TFmaster of Transtopia.com Has Passed Away (49152)
Posted by Professor Smooth on March 11th, 2007 @ 5:34am CDT

I'm getting a Page Not Found link from that page, Ryan. I've sent you Mr. Figueroa's email address.

Re: A Sad Day For Transformers fans: TFmaster of Transtopia.com Has Passed Away (49154)
Posted by Powersurge on March 11th, 2007 @ 5:40am CDT

That really sucks, i hope the site stays up in his memory.
The fandom has lost one of its best.

Re: A Sad Day For Transformers fans: TFmaster of Transtopia.com Has Passed Away (49156)
Posted by Danish-Liokaiser on March 11th, 2007 @ 5:46am CDT

No ... ='/
So young, and with Wife and a kid on 8 there ask "Where is daddy now?" =/ ...

One of our soldiers have died ... hes lost, but we will remember hes name "TFmaster" ='/ ...

Re: A Sad Day For Transformers fans: TFmaster of Transtopia.com Has Passed Away (49159)
Posted by Skullgrin140 on March 11th, 2007 @ 5:48am CDT

Oh F**k! I'm just speachless! We lost one of the greatest transformers Kitbashers that ever Lived!

R.I.P TFmaster, You Shall be missed

Re: A Sad Day For Transformers fans: TFmaster of Transtopia.com Has Passed Away (49171)
Posted by MacrossFA19 on March 11th, 2007 @ 6:10am CDT

WOW, just WOW. Don't know what to say. So young. My heart and prayers go out to his family.

Re: A Sad Day For Transformers fans: TFmaster of Transtopia.com Has Passed Away (49176)
Posted by Autobot032 on March 11th, 2007 @ 6:23am CDT

...31? O_o...

May God be with his family, and help them through this time.

God rest his soul.

Re: A Sad Day For Transformers fans: TFmaster of Transtopia.com Has Passed Away (49184)
Posted by Blozor on March 11th, 2007 @ 6:34am CDT

That guy was a genius. I always looked forward to seeing his kitbashes. My condolences.

Re: A Sad Day For Transformers fans: TFmaster of Transtopia.com Has Passed Away (49188)
Posted by Raymond T. on March 11th, 2007 @ 6:45am CDT

My thoughts and best wishes are with his family.

May his memory life on in the work and art others in their projects still to come...

Re: A Sad Day For Transformers fans: TFmaster of Transtopia.com Has Passed Away (49190)
Posted by TrailWrecker on March 11th, 2007 @ 6:50am CDT

rest in piece, my friend. you will be missed.

Re: A Sad Day For Transformers fans: TFmaster of Transtopia.com Has Passed Away (49193)
Posted by TFBuyer on March 11th, 2007 @ 6:52am CDT

The loss in itself is hard to fathom....but 31??? Much too young for a man who obviously had so much life. My prayers are with his family...

Re: A Sad Day For Transformers fans: TFmaster of Transtopia.com Has Passed Away (49198)
Posted by Mxprime on March 11th, 2007 @ 7:13am CDT

A brilliant kitbasher, I freaking loved his masterpiece powermaster prime.......it's never good to hear when someone dies whoever it is, my condolences go to his family.

Re: A Sad Day For Transformers fans: TFmaster of Transtopia.com Has Passed Away (49202)
Posted by Prowl76 on March 11th, 2007 @ 7:41am CDT

My thoughts and prayers go out to his family this day. May he find eternal rest.

Re: A Sad Day For Transformers fans: TFmaster of Transtopia.com Has Passed Away (49203)
Posted by Rijie on March 11th, 2007 @ 7:52am CDT

You will be forever in my heart TFM. Rest in peace.

Re: A Sad Day For Transformers fans: TFmaster of Transtopia.com Has Passed Away (49204)
Posted by Rogue. on March 11th, 2007 @ 7:56am CDT

I was just at his site the other day, too... first time I had been there in a while.

Re: A Sad Day For Transformers fans: TFmaster of Transtopia.com Has Passed Away (49205)
Posted by Evil Phil on March 11th, 2007 @ 7:58am CDT

Holy Shit

I met the guy a few times already, and posted a lot with him, and all I could say about him was that he was a great guy.

This is sad news indeed, he will be missed.

Re: A Sad Day For Transformers fans: TFmaster of Transtopia.com Has Passed Away (49212)
Posted by Nico on March 11th, 2007 @ 8:17am CDT

R.I.P

I cannot pray for you because i no longuer consider myself a cristian or anything religious whatsoever. But its a very sad news. Man...dying at the of age 31, that gotta suck!!!!

Until today i never knew who he was....but i guess he was among those great TF fans, like Ben Yee and "Seibertron". The guy who contributed to the fandom and all...

Look like he was a good kitbasher. Ill check them to honor his memory. Find peace in the "Allspark" ...er...heaven! Anyway, if there is a life after death, he will probably meet Chris Latta.

My last tought is that he will never see the Live-Action movie....

Re: A Sad Day For Transformers fans: TFmaster of Transtopia.com Has Passed Away (49214)
Posted by Nico on March 11th, 2007 @ 8:19am CDT

BTW...what will happen to his website? Will it close?

Re: A Sad Day For Transformers fans: TFmaster of Transtopia.com Has Passed Away (49216)
Posted by First-Aid on March 11th, 2007 @ 8:24am CDT

Ouch. As someone in the fandom I agree he will be sorely missed. I think this hits a lot of us harder because of his age...31 is too young. How many of us are that age? It makes his passing all the more poignent to us.
Speaking as someone in healthcare who has dealt with these situations up close, I sincerely offer my best wishes to his friends and family. Rest assured that even those of us who may be jaded by dealing with this type of situation daily are as deeply affected by this as anyone else would be...more so, knowing that he left behind an 8 year old son...

RIP Bill...may your spark join the Matrix- the best of us.

Re: A Sad Day For Transformers fans: TFmaster of Transtopia.com Has Passed Away (49225)
Posted by Nico on March 11th, 2007 @ 8:42am CDT

Make ne feel weird for my Dad. He's actually a little bit older then Bill, but is health condition is really bad. I dont know how me, my little brother and sister would feel if he would pass away.

Poor kid...

Re: A Sad Day For Transformers fans: TFmaster of Transtopia.com Has Passed Away (49232)
Posted by Wheeljack35 on March 11th, 2007 @ 8:45am CDT

Heart attack at 31??? DAMN

I feel bad and I never new the guy

I guess its because of his age his family and he was a transfan....Who will never get a chance to see the movie

May he rest in peace

Re: A Sad Day For Transformers fans: TFmaster of Transtopia.com Has Passed Away (49246)
Posted by Tom_Servo on March 11th, 2007 @ 9:21am CDT

My thoughts and prayers go out to his family. I hope that they know how many people loved and respected Bill and how much he will be missed.

Re: A Sad Day For Transformers fans: TFmaster of Transtopia.com Has Passed Away (49249)
Posted by Rebirth Megatron on March 11th, 2007 @ 9:26am CDT

I would also give my prayer to TFMAster and his family. I saw his work and it was fantastic. He will be missed.

Re: A Sad Day For Transformers fans: TFmaster of Transtopia.com Has Passed Away (49251)
Posted by Devastator on March 11th, 2007 @ 9:31am CDT

I'm in shock. I really don't know what to do right now. TFmaster started out as my idol, then as Bill he became one of my best friends. I never expected something like this would happen.

Re: A Sad Day For Transformers fans: TFmaster of Transtopia.com Has Passed Away (49257)
Posted by Powered Convoy on March 11th, 2007 @ 9:37am CDT

This is truly sad. He was very talented, and will be sorely missed. My condolences to his family and friends.

Randy

Re: A Sad Day For Transformers fans: TFmaster of Transtopia.com Has Passed Away (49261)
Posted by Emperor Galvatron on March 11th, 2007 @ 9:51am CDT

Wow...(looks back on past 3 months of 6 day work weeks)

I think I'm going to spend some extra time with my son today. I'm sure many of you with children understand why.

Sincerest condolences from me and mine.

Re: A Sad Day For Transformers fans: TFmaster of Transtopia.com Has Passed Away (49268)
Posted by Skowl on March 11th, 2007 @ 9:56am CDT

31 is too young, it's just too young - especially for any transfan who is no doubt still a kid at heart.

my deepest sympathies to his family & friends.

Re: A Sad Day For Transformers fans: TFmaster of Transtopia.com Has Passed Away (49270)
Posted by Primus C-00 on March 11th, 2007 @ 10:09am CDT

Oh Bo Sammo Sam :'(

Re: A Sad Day For Transformers fans: TFmaster of Transtopia.com Has Passed Away (49278)
Posted by tile_mcgillus on March 11th, 2007 @ 10:17am CDT

WOW. Just wow. Just this month I used one of his kitbashes as a template and guide for mine. As a newbie to this hardcore fandom, I never got to meet him but I recognized his amazing work. A tragic loss for the community but nothing compared to what his wife and child must be going through. There are no words...

It looks like the tfmaster site is going to have a paypal link set up shortly...

http://www.tfmaster.com/

Re: A Sad Day For Transformers fans: TFmaster of Transtopia.com Has Passed Away (49282)
Posted by structuraldefect on March 11th, 2007 @ 10:27am CDT

man thats terrible, shit feel terrible now, was emailing him just a few days ago and was pissed he was ignoring me, hes been an inspiration to kitbashers everywhere, and a lovely man to go with it, deepest heartfelt sympathies to his family, how long will the donation account be there for ? as am stone cold skint right now but would still like to contribute if possible at a later date.

Re: A Sad Day For Transformers fans: TFmaster of Transtopia.com Has Passed Away (49286)
Posted by Senor Hugo on March 11th, 2007 @ 10:31am CDT

Truly is a sad day. TFMaster was a good man, he was an artist, a damned good one at that. Unfortunatly I was never able to meet him in real life. To die at such a young age is unreal.

My thoughts go out to his family, I wish them the absolute best.

Re: A Sad Day For Transformers fans: TFmaster of Transtopia.com Has Passed Away (49302)
Posted by Milanion on March 11th, 2007 @ 10:51am CDT

I wish the best for his wife and son.

Re: A Sad Day For Transformers fans: TFmaster of Transtopia.com Has Passed Away (49317)
Posted by wavelength on March 11th, 2007 @ 11:14am CDT

may hius site become a lasting tribute to his brilliance.
r.i.p tfmaster

Re: A Sad Day For Transformers fans: TFmaster of Transtopia.com Has Passed Away (49318)
Posted by Syko on March 11th, 2007 @ 11:15am CDT

He was a hell of a guy and gave me inspiration for the kitbashes i am working on. My prayers go out to him and his family. Tis a sad thing to see someone this young die. He will be very sorely missed. RIP TFMaster *salutes*

Re: A Sad Day For Transformers fans: TFmaster of Transtopia.com Has Passed Away (49323)
Posted by Mkall on March 11th, 2007 @ 11:19am CDT

Damn, my prayers go out to his family. He will be missed

Re: A Sad Day For Transformers fans: TFmaster of Transtopia.com Has Passed Away (49342)
Posted by Supreme Convoy on March 11th, 2007 @ 11:54am CDT

I wish I got to know him better

Re: A Sad Day For Transformers fans: TFmaster of Transtopia.com Has Passed Away (49346)
Posted by 1337W422102 on March 11th, 2007 @ 12:01pm CDT

This is a sad day for all TF fans. May you find peace, Bill. You will always be the Master.

Re: A Sad Day For Transformers fans: TFmaster of Transtopia.com Has Passed Away (49359)
Posted by siekone on March 11th, 2007 @ 12:14pm CDT

It's not often that I cry, I consider myself a pretty tuff guy but this plain sucks and I am deeply hurt by this you will be missed my friend by all here may your spark rest peacfully!

Re: A Sad Day For Transformers fans: TFmaster of Transtopia.com Has Passed Away (49362)
Posted by Samsonator on March 11th, 2007 @ 12:20pm CDT

There's not much I can say that hasn't already been said... I always admired the man's work, that alone should be plenty of reason to miss him, but after hearing how great a guy he was from many of you, I never knew him, but I think I'll miss him even more knowing that I also never will...

Re: A Sad Day For Transformers fans: TFmaster of Transtopia.com Has Passed Away (49366)
Posted by Ultra Magnus on March 11th, 2007 @ 12:23pm CDT

I was fast asleep. Ryan called me about 8 times last night/this morning to give me this horrible news. He finally got ahold of me at about 6:00 this morning; and I was so distraught that I just lay there for about 4 hours, thinking of him.

I'm including a picture of he and I working on one of my projects; he was sort of my "Kitbash Konsultant", as it were. I lost touch with him when I relocated to Chicago, and that will remain a great shame on me; were were great friends! I had to take a few years off of kitbashing, as it's a VERY expensive hobby, and I went through some EXTREMELY trying times. Now, just as I'm about to get back into it...

...There's nothing more I can say. I will miss him greatly, as will the rest of the TransFan community.

Till all are one, my friend...

Re: A Sad Day For Transformers fans: TFmaster of Transtopia.com Has Passed Away (49369)
Posted by Ravage XK on March 11th, 2007 @ 12:26pm CDT

I didnt know him but I am sorry to hear of his passing. 31 is my age also and it's really no time at all. From the photos he looks like a happy man and at least he had family he knew loved him.

RIP TFmaster

How about putting up a Seibertron Gallery of all his Kitbash work as a sort of memorial for the excellent work he did?

Re: A Sad Day For Transformers fans: TFmaster of Transtopia.com Has Passed Away (49374)
Posted by Bugbite on March 11th, 2007 @ 12:29pm CDT

His customs were some of the best I've ever seen.

RIP. :-(

Re: A Sad Day For Transformers fans: TFmaster of Transtopia.com Has Passed Away (49376)
Posted by Sylus on March 11th, 2007 @ 12:32pm CDT

That's sad such a young age and he leaves behind a wife a child of only 8 years of age, my prayers and thoughts go out to his family and friends. RIP TFmaster and may your spark join the matrix, the greatest of Seibertron.

Re: A Sad Day For Transformers fans: TFmaster of Transtopia.com Has Passed Away (49383)
Posted by Sideshow Sideswipe on March 11th, 2007 @ 12:36pm CDT

another truly amazing talent dies young

RIP TFMaster.

Re: A Sad Day For Transformers fans: TFmaster of Transtopia.com Has Passed Away (49394)
Posted by jgilkinson on March 11th, 2007 @ 12:56pm CDT

my prayers go out to his wife and son

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