RUSSELL, Susan Jessie
Born May 17, 1948 in Kingston, Ontario; died peacefully at home on August 4, 2010 in Maple Ridge, BC at the age of 62, with her devoted friend and caregiver Rosalina Mendoza by her side. Dearly beloved daughter of the late Cy and Betty Russell; loving sister to Roberta Hamilton (Geoff) and Jim (Judy Mosoff); aunt to Joe, Sue, Jessica, Adam, Ben and Leah; great-aunt to Sam, Amelia and Ayo. Susan earned a BAH and MA at Carleton University, a M.Ed. at Queen’s, and Ph.D. at the University of Toronto. After graduating from Carleton she went on a solo tour of Europe and Russia. On her return, she taught for two years at the Ottawa New School. For fourteen years she taught in the Department of Sociology and Anthropology at Concordia University. Her scholarly articles on gender and education and living with multiple sclerosis are widely cited. She wrote short stories that were published under the title Black Cat. In the first years after her diagnosis of multiple sclerosis in 1975, she tried many treatment possibilities, traveling, sometimes with her mother, to the United States, Greece and within Canada. She would never have thought of herself as courageous but those who knew her knew better. Susan was a true and loyal friend to many for as long as her illness permitted and a good listener to the end. Sometimes the ‘family’ thanks the caregivers, but in this case the caregivers became family: Lina, Lhen, (Alfie, Samantha) and Edwin. Susan attracted the best and they gave her their best. We all want to thank Marit McRoberts, Dr. Margaret Swift, Dr. Martin Milewski, the nurses and other staff from Fraser Health Unit East Side.
Condolences may be sent to www.mapleridgefuneral.ca