Susan McCune

“Loving” and “caring” are the words that come to mind when one thinks of Susan McCune. She was a sweet person by nature, always putting other people’s needs before her own. She was a fun loving and supportive mom, grandma, sister and friend.

Born on September 27, 1943 in Detroit, Michigan to George and Helen (Berrell) Leffler, Susan McCune was the middle child of three. George and Helen worked hard to raise Susan, along with her siblings Georgeanne and Bruce, George working for the Ford Motor Company while Helen stayed home to care for the children and run the household. Susan and her older sister, Georgeanne and younger brother Bruce got along and played well together. Their growing up years were a good time for raising a family in America. World War II was coming to an end and the prosperous years that followed made Detroit the “car capital of the world.” While Susan had a typical childhood playing with her friends and attending school, there was a tragic point in her young life. While crossing the street she was struck by a car at the age of twelve and missed over six months of school. The real tragedy is when she slipped on the church stairs while in high school, breaking the same leg, which resulted in her missing the Elvis Presley concert!

At Redford High School Susan was 16 and met a young man, Dennis McCune, who became her future husband. They were high school sweethearts and after many years of dating they were married in 1966. Susan, who had graduated from Redford in 1961, attended Wayne State University.

In 1967 Susan and Dennis decided to move to Kalamazoo. It was here that they began their family with the birth of their two beautiful children, Jason in 1969 and Jennie in 1971. Susan stayed home and dedicated herself to raising her children. There wasn’t anything she wouldn’t do for them. She was a sweet natured, loving mother who would wake Jason and Jennie up every morning by singing to them, much to their annoyance. Besides taking care of the children, Susan also enjoyed shopping and she was sometimes able to combine the two passions. Susan loved shopping , buying things to make sure Jason and Jennie always looked their best. Once the grandchildren started to arrive, the shopping focus switched to Tot to Teen and Little Chick. Susan was also the one to encourage and guide her children in school projects taking pride in making sure the projects were the best that they could be.

Susan and Dennis were divorced after fifteen years of marriage. Even though Susan had worked at AT&T part time when the kids were little, this was a big adjustment in her life. Susan started a career at Portage Public Schools that lasted for twenty-eight years. She started working first at West Middle School where her children attended school at the time and eventually moved up to work in the administrative building. While at West Middle School, she got to know many of Jason and Jennie’s friends and became a “second mom” to their friends throughout the school years and beyond. Susan was a hard worker who liked to keep herself busy which resulted in her working at H&R Block during the tax season for over 15 years. With her sweet disposition and caring nature Susan readily made friends everywhere she went.

When Susan became a grandmother, she found that just like motherhood, this was something she excelled at. Known as “McCune” and “Grandma” to Tony, Katie, Ryan, Jack, Isabel and Sam, Susan devoted as much time as she could to her grandchildren, attending every game and recital. Even when she was too sick to sit in the stands, she still attended their games and parked her car so the grandkids could see she was there. She enjoyed buying her grandchildren’s school clothes and spent so much time hanging out at their house that their friends became her friends! Holidays and birthdays for her grandchildren were important to Susan and she made sure they were celebrated with lots of balloons and perfectly wrapped presents. Susan loved the sounds of nature and her favorite place to visit was Mackinac Island. She enjoyed many trips to Northern Michigan and traveling with her family.

Tragically, Susan was diagnosed with breast cancer at the young age of fifty-eight. Even through her pain and sickness, Susan still put others and their needs ahead of her own. There isn’t anything she wouldn’t do for her children and grandchildren no matter how sick she was. Her constant companion, her dog Bailey, helped her heal through her first bout of cancer.

Susan McCune was a devoted mother, doting grandmother and loyal friend. She was a loving, supportive and caring lady, who also had a sense of humor and a ready laugh. She consistently put others and their needs ahead of her own. She will be missed by all who were blessed to know and love her.

Susan McCune, age 64, died August 4, 2008 in Kalamazoo. A celebration of life service will be held Friday 2:00 PM at Life Story Funeral Home, Betzler-6080 Stadium Drive-Kalamazoo, 375-2900 followed by a reception at the Life Story Center. Susan was preceded in death by her parents. Surviving are two children: Jason (Jamie) McCune of Portage and Jennie (John) Bakos of Kalamazoo; six grandchildren: Tony, Katie, Ryan, Jack, Isabel and Sam and two siblings: Georgeanne (Fred) Verbridge of Brighton and Bruce (Janice) Leffler of Boca Raton, FL. Please visit Susan’s personal web page at www.lifestorynet.com, where you can archive a memory or photo, sign her memory book or make a memorial contribution to Hospice of Southwest Michigan.