Suzanne Lemieux

Suzanne Lemieux was a modest woman, quiet and observant in her ways. She was trustworthy and traditional in her approach to her life and in her relationships. She was tough-minded with the kind of “stick to it” attitude that earned the respect of all who knew her. She was also a woman who was meticulous, carefully disciplined, and orderly in virtually everything she undertook. Realistic about life, she was always at the ready, prepared to take on responsibility.

Suzanne was born on December 23, 1930 at the family home in Atholville, New Brunswick. Her parents were Alfreda and Fred Roach. Suzanne was raised in Atholville and Bathurst New Brunswick, and Carlton Quebec. She was brought up to be self-confident and dependable. These were traits that would serve her well throughout her life.

Growing up in the Lemieux household was a bit different than most homes. There were good times to be had, but just as often there was a fair share of challenges as well. However, Suzanne was able to work through the usual family problems when they appeared, and she was the one person in the family who seemed able to keep the stress at bay. Suzanne was raised with eight siblings. She was the eldest and had five younger brothers and three younger sisters. There were brothers Gerry, Roger, Guy and Leo, then sisters Pat and Bernyce, then brother Roy and finally sister Doreen. Suzanne was constantly involved in activities with her brothers and sisters. Suzanne and her siblings may have had the typical rivalries while growing up but Suzanne was always consistently loyal to her family.

As a young child, Suzanne was never someone who needed to be the center of attention. She wasn’t pushy and never forced her way into games or other activities. Suzanne developed a variety of interests, though, and the things she enjoyed doing she did well. She was always curious about the world around her and was often eager to explore it. Suzanne enjoyed taking part in ballroom dancing. Even at an early age, she had a love of hairdressing with her dolls. In her spare time she liked to help with the kids and do some sewing. However, what Suzanne enjoyed most was simply playing and spending time with her many friends.

Always considered to be a solid friend, Suzanne was fortunate to have numerous acquaintances and several very close friends during her life. Since she disliked making generalizations about people and preferred to draw her own conclusions based on direct observation, Suzanne was able to see beneath the surface of relationships and became a true friend to those who knew her. She was committed to her friends and valued the trust she placed in them. It was not uncommon for Suzanne to go beyond the call of duty for others, and friends frequently sought her out for advice because she had a knack for coming up with practical solutions to any type of dilemma. While growing up, one of her best friends was Corrine. Later in life, she became friends with Lyse.

On September 6, 1954 Suzanne exchanged wedding vows with Gilles Lemieux at the St. Elizabeth of Portugal R.C. Church of Montreal, Quebec. Compassionate and devoted to Gilles, Suzanne held endearing, traditional values about marriage and family life. She took the responsibility of marriage to heart, giving it her total commitment. She was a source of strength to Gilles and using her gifts at nurturing one-on-one relationships, she worked hard to make her new family happy.

Suzanne brought the same traditional values in her marriage to bear on how she raised her children. She was a good parent to them, always firm yet fair in her dealings. She would always listen carefully and think things through before she acted, even when it was an adverse situation. Suzanne was also a walking schedule, always seeming to know what everyone in the family needed to do, where they needed to be and when they needed to be there. Suzanne was blessed with two children, Jocelyn (Lynn) and Francine. She was also blessed with two grandchildren, Marco and Diana.

Suzanne greatly enjoyed what she did for a living. She was a hard worker. She was skilled at working effectively in small groups and in one-on-one situations as well as handling solo assignments efficiently. Suzanne enjoyed dealing with concrete ideas and could penetrate any amount of fuzzy information to reach the essential facts. Always able to attend to the task at hand, Suzanne was excellent at meeting deadlines. She was an efficient worker, one who paid careful attention to detail, allowing sufficient time to complete one task before moving on to the next. Her primary occupation was as a hairdresser. She worked for herself at her own salon - Suzanne's Beauty Salon. Suzanne worked hard, doing what was necessary in order to get the job done.

Suzanne liked to experience things first-hand as well as learn about them. This trait carried over into her hobbies, where she was very methodical in how she organized her activities and categorized things. Since she enjoyed her private time, Suzanne always tried to allocate a specific time for working on her hobbies. Her favorite pursuits were working in the garden, home renovations and baking. Suzanne was content to enjoy her hobbies alone but was also willing to share her interests with others.

Many organizations were grateful to have Suzanne as a member, since she always brought with her a “stick to it” attitude and a high degree of common sense. Using straightforward methods to successfully complete the job, Suzanne was a great planner who was incredibly well organized. It seemed that she was able to schedule any event or activity with ease. She always seemed to know exactly what needed to be done. Throughout her later years, Suzanne was an active member of the Catholic Women's League at St Gregory and was the membership secretary at Parents Without Partners.

Suzanne was a woman who was dedicated and devoted to her faith. She was a longtime member at St Gregory's Church. She was a sympathetic woman who valued her beliefs and was willing to work tirelessly for them.

Suzanne enjoyed traveling and taking vacations. Since she was an early starter and had a knack for planning everything, traveling with Suzanne appeared effortless. She enjoyed researching all of her examined options and applying cost-effective planning techniques. Plus, no matter where she traveled, Suzanne always had a back up plan at the ready, just in case. Favorite vacations included going back east to see her home town.

Suzanne was a lover of animals and cherished her pets. One of Suzanne’s favorites was Max, the cat. Se used to be terrified of cats, but Max inched her way into her heart and there was no looking back. They were best friends for 18 years. Her family was rounded out by Shelley, a second cat that looked like Max.

When retirement age finally arrived, she continued to work until the Alzheimer's became too advanced. She was still healthy and working at 70 years of age.

Suzanne Lemieux passed away on April 11, 2010 at her Long Term Care facility in Toronto, Ontario. She had a long hard fight with Alzheimer's. She is survived by her children Lynn and Francine, her grandchildren Marco and Diana, and, her 4 great grandchildren Jessica, Allysa, Cody and Mateo. Services were held at the Church of St Gregory the Great. Suzanne was laid to rest in Resurrection Cemetery.

Commitment is a key word that can be used to describe the life of Suzanne Lemieux. She was committed to living the life of a good woman who was both practical and trustworthy. She was committed to the traditional values that she upheld her entire life. She committed herself to being a hard worker who expected the same effort in return from those around her. Most of all, she was committed to those she knew and loved.