Obituary of Susan Rutherford

Our beloved mother and grandmother, Susan (Sue) Rutherford of Calgary left the world peacefully with family by her side on Friday, January 9, 2009 at the age of 94 years. She has gone to join Tom, her beloved husband, of sixty-three years; her parents, sisters and brothers, Howley, Lew, Nancy, Lala, Jack, and Maureen. Sue will be missed by her children, Anne and Richard Johnson, Maureen and Bob Haney, and Tom and Donna Rutherford; grandchildren, Susanne (Allan) Goosney, Michael Johnson, Erin (Lonnie) Hansen, Jim (Cathy) Haney, Keith Haney, Thomas, Steven, and Nancy Rutherford; great-grandchildren, Isabelle, Allison, Joseph Goosney, and Joshua Haney; as well as many cherished nieces and nephews. Sue’s parents, Martha and John James, migrated from Ireland with her five older siblings, to seek a new life in Canada. Born in Winnipeg, Sue moved to Calgary, and attended Connaught, Sunalta, and Western Canada High Schools. She trained as a teacher during the depression and felt fortunate to be employed in a number of one-room schools around rural Alberta, teaching up to nine grades simultaneously. She met Tom Rutherford at Scarboro United Church, where they were both founding members, and they were married in 1940. Sue and Tom lived in their home on Richmond Road, for fifty-two years until they moved, in 2003, to the Manors at Garrison Woods. Her family was Sue’s priority; she was a dedicated wife, a supportive mother, and caring sister and aunt. She was very active in Scarboro Church, especially in Young Peoples, Elda Daniels (U.C.W), and Couples Club. She spent many hours visiting with shut-in seniors and volunteered for many years with Meals-On-Wheels. She was a talented artist and gardener and loved to entertain friends and family. An exceptional grandmother, Sue loved every moment spent with her grandchildren and great-grandchildren. Sue was an avid reader, and as her eyesight failed she was grateful for her library books-on-tape. The family would like to thank the residents and staff of the Manors at Garrison Woods, and her caregivers at the Chinook Hospice and Bethany Care Center, for their friendship, care and support. To celebrate her life, a Memorial Service will be held at Scarboro United Church (134 Scarboro Avenue S.W.) on Friday, January 16, 2009 at 2:00 p.m. Condolences may be forwarded through www.mcinnisandholloway.com. If friends so desire, memorial tributes may be made directly for Diversity Services of the Calgary Public Library, the Calgary Public Library Foundation, 6th Floor, 616 Macleod Trail SE, Calgary, Alberta, T2G 2M2, www.canadahelps.org, or alternatively to the Canadian National Institute for the Blind, 15 Colonel Baker Place N.E., Calgary, AB T2E 4Z3 Telephone: (403) 261-7219, www.cnib.ca. Arrangements in care of McINNIS & HOLLOWAY FUNERAL HOMES Chapel of the Bells, 2720 CENTRE STREET NORTH. TELEPHONE: (403) 276-2296.