Suzan M McKenzie

It was a good day on November the 21st, 1946 when a beautiful, auburn haired little girl was born to Harvey and Hazel McClanahan of Birmingham, Alabama. She would be the oldest of five siblings. It was a glorious day a week ago on August 2nd, 2017 when that same little girl who had become a beautiful, selfless, godly wife, mother, grandmother and friend, entered into the kingdom of heaven that God had prepared for her from the beginning. No one has been more ready to look into the eyes of Jesus and to enjoy His hugs and tugs than my Mom. She found great comfort in leaving us in the fact that we will all be together again in heaven. It was a wrenching emotional day for her family and friends as we, on one hand, gloriously celebrated her salvation in Christ and her home going to heaven, while at the same time weeping terribly at the aching thought of how we could possibly live our lives without her. Mom is survived by: Her husband: Pete Her Children: Jenny and her husband Tom, son Patrick and his wife Danielle, and myself and my wife Jasheen And Her Grandchildren: Nicholas and Molly Gorcoff; Gabrielle, Isabelle, and Milo McKenzie; and Aya McKenzie Her brothers and sister and their families: Mike and Julie McClanahan and sons Tommy and Matthew; Tom and Lisa McClanahan and their sons, Grayson and Keller; Jenny and Eddie Collins and daughter Kim. Suzan was raised in a Southern, traditional, patriotic, all-american home, in the days of Mom and apple pie home that was healthy, fun, tight knit and safe. Suzan’s father, Harvey McClanahan, was a WWII hero and officer with the Army Corp of Engineers in the South Pacific. After the war he joined the Army Reserve and served there for over twenty years, finally retiring at the rank of Lt. Colonel. He was a great husband and father and he spent his whole professional career working for two international engineering firms. My grandmother and Mom’s mom, Hazel, was a dedicated mother and homemaker her whole life. Being a mama bear for five children kept her busy as you might imagine. She was dearly loved by her family and their friends, and Dad has always said that he respected her so much, that he was honored and humbled that she approved of Suzan marrying him. Mom attended Charles A. Brown Elementary and Ensley High School in Birmingham, and she has friends from elementary and high school that have been following her journey on Caring Bridge and Facebook these last 6 months. She was loved by all who knew her at every level and facet of her life. Dad always said that if you don’t love Suzan, it means that you have never met her. She was a cheerleader in High School and to this day has lifelong friends who were cheerleaders together there. She met dad in 1962 during Christmas holidays her Junior year and Dad’s senior year in High School and they started dating. She was a cheerleader and dad was the captain of the basketball team and baseball teams. Dad was committed to go to Florida State to play baseball that Fall and Mom was headed to Auburn the next year, and they were madly in love. Well, at least Dad was. In his own words he said that he was “Smitten” or captivated by her from the beginning. I’m not sure about mom at that point. As it turns out, God worked a miracle to get Dad to change his mind at the last minute to go to Auburn rather than Florida State, and the rest is history. While at Auburn, Mom made quite an impression. As a freshman pledge in her sorority, she was entered into a beauty contest at the request of her sorority, and won the title of Miss Fall Rush of 1964. She was also chosen as an Angel Flight girl as a sponsor of the Air Force ROTC. She was one of the first War Eagle girls chosen as a hostess for the University She also was the runner up to Miss Auburn in 1967. She was the runner up to Greek Goddess in 1967 Meanwhile she and dad dated all through their Auburn years and were married on September 16, 1967. If you’ve ever attended mom and dad’s Marriage Builder course, you know that story, and especially the part about “ARMANDO”, but that is another story. This coming up September the 16th would have been Mom and Dad’s 50th anniversary. A little over three weeks ago our family and some close friends threw Mom and dad a small early 50th anniversary party and it was a genuine love fest, not to ever be forgotten by those who attended. After they married, Dad played pro baseball for about five years and during those years mom taught school. She got her degree in early childhood education in the area of special needs children. She loved teaching, but when dad retired from playing baseball, they decided to start a family and mom retired as well. She spent the rest of her life seeing her life and ministry with Dad as a team, with her being a supportive wife to dad in the various ministries God gave them over the last 47 years. Her real love was just being a mom and wife in their home. She was incredibly domestic, and no matter whether we were living in Alabama, California, or Germany, she always made our house a home by her innate ability to put her own warm, loving, cheerful self into our home environment. Then came her grandchildren. Dad said that he never tried to compete with her for the love and attention of their grandchildren. Understandably, they would all run over or around him to get to her. But that’s the wonder of my Mom. She was attractive in so many ways. She never tried to be, she just was. Everyone wanted to be her best friend, partly because she was so safe to be with and she listened to what we had to say, and you knew she really cared. During her college days, Mom won a Miss Smile contest one summer sponsored by a local newspaper. Think about it. What a package God made when He created my Mom. She was always friendly and accepting. She was beautiful inside and out. As a child, her mother told Pete that when she was one or two years old, people would stop her on the street to just look at her and comment on her striking good looks. Mom never had a bad word to say about anyone. She hated the idea of gossip because she so valued the dignity of others and their reputations. She was a safe person to confide in, because she held secrets and confidences as holy information that she would never divulge. To our knowledge, she never had an enemy at any time in her life. She didn't just attract friends, without trying and just being herself, she elicited adoring devotion from all of us. She often had people say to her, “Thanks for being you.” She looked well to the ways of her household. He also said that he never competed with her in loving each other. No matter how hard he tried, and he tried hard, he could not out love her. They truly had a lifelong love affair. Dad always said that he knew God had a wife prepared just for him, and when he met and fell in love with Mom in High School, he remembers telling God, even as young as they were, “If this is not her, You blew it!” He said that he loved her before he ever met her, and when he did, he knew it was her. Everyone loved Mom because she loved everyone. Love begets love. She was a woman of genuine grace, love, and dignity. She never had an unkind word for anyone, and would always see the best rather than the worst in people. We gave her the title of the model Proverbs 31 woman, who her husband said of her, “Many daughters have done nobly, but you excel them all. Charm is deceitful and beauty is vain, but a woman who fears the Lord, she shall be praised.” Her closest friends joked about her being “practically perfect in every way.” When we as a family were weeping uncontrollably sitting at her side as she entered into heaven, I guess that might be the greatest tribute we could have given her. We knew what heaven was gaining, and what she was gaining, and while that is a great comfort, we also knew what we were losing. It will take a long time to get over the overwhelming sadness and grief that we all feel about losing her. She is a great loss, but God’s grace is sufficient and our hope and strength is in Him. Mom wanted us to make sure that we thanked all of you who so faithfully prayed for her and us, and who so generously have supported and encouraged her and us. We as a family are so grateful to all of you who have demonstrated the love, grace, mercy, and emotional support that you have given. It is a true witness of the love of Jesus to so many who have watched this happen as God was wooing Mom into His heavenly presence over these past few months. The 23rd Psalm became very meaningful like never before to Mom and Dad in their last days together. They prayed through it together many times. And because of the wonderful, encouraging truths found there, through all of what Mom has gone through, she never sinned in attitude or gratitude. She always marveled at God’s goodness and knew that He had a great purpose in this, even if she didn’t always understand what that might be. “The Lord gives and the Lord takes away. Blessed be the name of the Lord. Through all of this Job did not sin nor did he blame God.” (Job 1:21) She was overwhelmed to tears on many occasions by God’s goodness, provision, and protection, as she and Dad went on this journey together. She never felt bitter, or that God was unfair or cruel. She knew God had called her in her suffering to something much bigger than her. She was content with that. She decided that she was going to praise God no matter what He did, or how things turned out, for her God is a good God, all the time, and He does all things well. She clung to the truth of the character she knew her God to have, and God has rewarded her richly, “for surely goodness and mercy followed her all the days of her life, and now she is dwelling in the house of the Lord forever.” We love and miss you Mom! We will join you in heaven one day and we will celebrate together the salvation God has provided for us in Jesus Christ. You have left us a beautiful and enduring legacy of not only how to live, but also how to die in the Lord, and we are forever grateful. Mom, while we have work to do here until we join you there, we will never forget you, and as God and time heal our hearts, their will always be a vacuum of love and adoration that nothing or no one else could ever fill. Kick up your heels. Worship Jesus with the angels, and that’s how God will get us through, as we think of you, every day in the days to come. “Strength and dignity were her clothing, and she smiled at the future she knew awaited her.” UNTIL THEN MOM!