Susan H. Kirkpatrick

Mrs. Susan H. Kirkpatrick, 81, of Ellijay, passed away unexpectedly Wednesday, Aug. 31, 2022, at Jasper Piedmont Hospital.

She was born April 27, 1941, in Harrisburg, Ill., to James L. and Catherine Halcom. She was originally from southern Illinois where she met her husband of 62 years, Michael L. Kirkpatrick Sr. After many moves, they settled in Georgia in 1980 and moved to Ellijay fulltime in 1994 after having been part-timers in the mountains since 1983.

She attended Southern Illinois and Murray State Universities. She was a full-time Army wife and mother early in their marriage. After both their children were born deaf, she became dedicated to bettering the lives of their children, becoming a teacher of the deaf and a strong advocate for better laws to assist in their and other deaf children’s education. She served on numerous education and state boards, being instrumental in lobbying for changes to Deaf Education laws in Minnesota. Susan was active in their real estate and management company and directed several “green” projects before the time of green development. These included some in Gilmer County, which became very special to her and her family.

She was active in the purchase of the Good Samaritan Church facilities and active in the church for over 30 years. She was a Master Gardener and loved her time in her garden and the outdoors. One of her joys was cooking gourmet meals that to her were relaxing and fun and which she excelled.

She never met a stranger. She was warm, loving, caring and above all, a true friend and a person whom you could always count on. As her daughter quoted; “her mother has always been the rock of her life.” She was a fighter, both for herself, her family, as well as for her friends.

She is preceded in death by parents and older sister, JoAnn Stout, all of Illinois.

She is survived by husband, Michael Sr.; son, Michael Jr. and wife, Elizabeth Kirkpatrick and daughters, Callie and Lauren, of Sterling, Mass.; daughter, Kimberly, of Georgia; and her two four-legged Australian Shepard children, Panda and Priss. She will be missed by all.

A funeral Mass will be held at 1 p.m. Friday, Sept. 9, 2022, at Good Samaritan Catholic Church in Ellijay with visitation starting at 11:30 a.m. in the Good Samaritan Catholic Social Hall adjacent to the church.

An American Sign Language Interpreter will be provided. Father Randy Maddox and Father Bradley Starr will co-celebrate the Mass. 

In lieu of flowers, donations can be made in her memory to St. Vincent de Paul at Good Samaritan or Five Freedoms Farm www.fivefreedomsfarm.org.