Susanne Northcutt's Obituary
Susanne Sandberg Northcutt, lovingly called SuSu by her grandchildren, passed away at Good Shepherd Medical Center on November 17, 2017 at the age of 83.
Susanne was born in Galveston, Texas on July 14, 1934, the only child of Emma Sue and Walter Hugo “Swede” Sandberg. She took great pride in being a BOI baby – Born on the Island.
Susanne grew up in Texas City, Texas, with her parents and also spent a great amount of time as a child in Kilgore, Texas, with her mother’s family. After graduating from Texas City High School, she attended Sullins College, an all-women Methodist college in Bristol, Virginia, for her freshman year of college. She transferred and graduated from her true love, Southern Methodist University where she was a member of Zeta Tau Alpha social sorority.
On July 20, 1957, Susanne married the love of her life, Dr. William Davis Northcutt, III of Longview, Texas and they immediately moved to Fairbanks, AK, where W.D. was stationed at Ladd Airforce Base for two years before returning to Longview to enter an orthodontic practice.
Susanne and W.D. reared four children: William Davis IV (Davis), Walter Ridley, Frances Evelyn Compton (Cissy), and LeGrande Sandberg (Le).
Susanne was a lifelong Methodist and joined First Methodist Church of Longview upon returning from Fairbanks. She served in various capacities throughout the life of the church including United Methodist Women, seventh grade Sunday school teacher, Methodist Youth Fellowship, church kitchen volunteer and children’s choir volunteer. Susanne was a member of the Henry Foster Sunday school class.
After arriving in Longview, Susanne became active in many civic organizations. She joined the Junior Service League, now known as the Junior League of Longview, serving as president from 1973-74. She had fond memories of participating as a walking ad in the JLL’s annual Charity Ball.
As a young mom, Susanne spent many memorable years with her best friends Patricia Houston, Betty Davis Hurst, Rose Kirkpatrick, Linda Butter Thomas, and Penny and Mike Macey at Trinity Day School. She volunteered in the kitchen, and served as librarian, field trip chaperone, and on the Board of Trustees. She served as a Cub Scout den mother for her sons for many years.
Through Susanne’s dear friends, Ruby and Wayne Crisman and their daughters, Waynell and Brenda, she became involved with Crisman School. She served on the Board of Trustees for almost forty years and cooked for their annual garage sale fundraiser.
Other well-loved organizations Susanne was involved with included Good Shepherd Guild, Green Thumb Garden Club, Civic Music, Longview Community Theater, and the Stew Pot.
The rigors of charity work brought together an informal coalition of dear friends in the form of the Kitchen Kabinet. The Kitchen Kabinet provided culinary talents to many civic charities and fundraisers. Susanne and W.D. enjoyed their weekly gatherings around the kitchen island at Rose and Kenneth Kirkpatrick’s home. The Kabinet included Rose and Kenneth Kirkpatrick, Jack and Barbara Phillips, Claire Foster, Linda and Charles Thomas, Betty Davis Hurst, and Penny and Mike Macey.
Susanne is survived by her son Davis of Longview, her son Walter and his wife Cappi of Longview, her daughter Cissy and her husband Craig Abernathy of Longview, and her son Le of Los Angeles, CA. She is also survived by Walter and Cappi’s sons Nathaniel “Nathan” Graham Northcutt, and William “Will” Savage Northcutt, and by Cissy and Craig’s daughters Amelia Compton Abernathy, Susannah Searcy Abernathy and son Logan Northcutt Abernathy. Susanne is also survived by her cousins Fred Sandberg, Ray Simpson, and Patty Simpson Moore as well as her brother and sister in law, LeGrande and Cassandra Northcutt and their children Gordon Northcutt and Aurelia Northcutt Newton, and their respective spouses and children.
Honorary Pall Bearers for Susanne include Dr. John Guttry, LeGrande Northcutt, Jack Phillips, Overton Shelmire, Clyde Tomlinson, and Charles Thomas. Pall Bearers are Mark Abernathy, Miles Darby, David Houston, Mike Martin, Gordon Northcutt, Tim Payne, Day Shelmire, and George Thomas.
The family would like to thank Alicia Robinson, Dr. Rick Earnest, Dr. Samir Germanwala, Dr. Jay Chastain, along with the dedicated doctors, nurses, and staff at Good Shepherd Medical Center and her loyal caregivers from StayKare Solutions.
In lieu of flowers, donations may be made to Trinity School of Texas, The Crisman School, or
First United Methodist Church.
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