Sue Williams

Sue graduated from Pontiac Township High School in 1969. From there, she went on to study speech pathology at Illinois State University. It was at ISU that Sue met the love of her life, Mike Williams. Sue was an avid John Wayne fan and she and Mike were married on Wayne’s birthday, May 26, 1973 in Normal. They lived a life of true love until Mike’s passing in 2018. She is survived by her daughter Caroline “Carrie” Schindler, son-in-law Alan Schindler, granddaughter Jordan Schindler numerous “adopted” kids and grandkids, and her chosen sister, Diane Hostettler.

From the time she was sixteen years old, Sue worked outside the home. She had jobs in healthcare, retail management, and bookkeeping. However, it was working as the registrar at Limestone High School that she truly found her calling. Sue was there to be a mentor, a sounding board, a mom, and offer guidance to the staff of LCHS and students alike.

While Sue took pride in her work, she was most proud of her family. She was an incredible wife, and the love she and Mike shared was evident to everyone who had the pleasure of meeting her. She spent many hours volunteering with Limestone’s marching band, earning the moniker Mama Sue, a title she kept for the rest of her life. She was so proud of her daughter and son-in-law, but it was being Jordan’s Oma that brought her the most joy. She spent many days with Jordan teaching her to cook. Together they perfected apple pies, mac n cheese, and eventually Thanksgiving dinner. Ask anyone who knew her and they would all agree that Jordan was the light in Oma’s life.

When she wasn’t working or volunteering, Sue was interested in antiques and crafting. She could fix a mean tuna casserole, brown sugar ham, and her meatloaf was legendary. She was a voracious reader; it didn’t matter the genre or subject, Sue would read it. Some of Sue's favorite memories were of the trips she took with Mike: Hawaii, “out West,” and Washington DC. She was a fan of the theater, and it was through her that Carrie and Jordan found their love of musicals, and often the three of them would attend performances together. Later in her life, Sue, together with Jordan, discovered “RuPaul’s Drag Race,” and this fostered another common interest between Sue and her girls.

From the time she was a little girl, Sue was a fighter, and she continued to fight throughout her life. She beat rheumatic fever as a child, and survived breast cancer as an adult.

For the last two years, Sue lived at Hallmark Healthcare, where she continued to listen, counsel and guide. She reveled in the interactions she had with staff, viewing herself as kind of a surrogate grandmother to many of the employees. She admired them, and always commented on how hard they worked. Ever the proper hostess, when anyone came to her room, she offered them snacks, candy, or something to drink. It is fair to say that Sue will be remembered by all who knew her for the kindness of her soul and her ability to make anyone feel welcome, seen, heard, and important.

The family would like to thank Traditions Hospice of Peoria for their support and guidance. They would also like to send their heartfelt appreciation and love to the staff at Hallmark for loving Sue and always making her feel special.

A celebration of life will be held from 1-4p.m. on Saturday, December 14th at Davison-Fulton Bartonville Chapel, with a time of sharing at 4 p.m.

In lieu of flowers, donations can be made to Limestone High School Bands, Project Linus Peoria Chapter, or Peoria Toys For Tots.

Online condolences may be shared with Sue's family at www.Davison-Fulton-BartonvilleChapel.com