Suzanne Nelson Montgomery's Obituary
Suzanne Nelson Montgomery passed away peacefully on March 23rd, 2025, in Farmers Branch, Texas. She was born on December 9th, 1957, to Walter and Peggy Nelson in Xenia, Ohio.
Suzanne grew up in Ohio until the Nelson family moved to Texas in 1967, where she attended Thomas C. Gooch elementary, T.C. Marsh Middle School, and graduated in the class of 1976 from W.T White High School. Hook ‘Em Horns!
In the summer of 1973, Suzanne met her beloved husband Kenneth (Ken) Anthony Montgomery while working at Hannah’s Pies on Forest Lane. Following a whirlwind early romance, they separated briefly when Ken moved to California after high school. However, Suzanne was not to be deterred and wrote Ken a deeply emotional letter telling him how she felt and how much she missed him. Shortly after turning the sealed and stamped envelope over to her mail carrier, she had second thoughts about sending it and asked the mailman to return the letter to her. Thankfully for all involved, this particular mail carrier was a stodgy pedant for the letter of the law (“Puns are the highest form of comedy” – Shakespeare, probably) and insisted that once a piece of mail was in his possession, he was prohibited by federal law from tampering with it. The letter found its way to Ken in California, where he belatedly realized he was a dum-dum (I’m paraphrasing his thoughts, of course) and moved right on back to Texas, where Suzanne and Ken began a life long journey of love, family, adventure, and a few other things that I can’t put into print… They were married on August 25th, 1979 at Holy Cross Lutheran Church in Dallas, Texas
Suzanne and Ken were blessed with four wonderful children – Kenneth, Matthew, Kristine and Kevan – and they were the entirety of Suzanne’s world; nothing was more important to her than her children. That was, of course, until she became a Grandma. When Nathan, and then Allyson, were born, the rest of us took a back seat (and gladly). Suzanne adored her grandchildren and doted on them mercilessly. She spent a vast majority of her spare time helping Allyson with Girl Scouts, or school, or crafts, and Nathan always knew he had a bedroom at Nana’s if he needed to get away from his Dad for a bit (and what teenage boy wouldn’t?).
And she didn’t stop at just her children, as to her, all kids were her kids. Any of her children’s friends were always welcome for dinner, and if they came to her asking for help with anything, she was always glad to assist. Her bonus kids include, but are certainly not limited to, Jim McSweeney, Ariel Winchester, and James Stuckey.
Let us not forget her fur babies, either. Suzanne loved pets, and from her first dog – a miniature black poodle named Pepper – all the way through her most recent companion – a black border collie named Bowie – Suzanne’s life was always filled with furry friends who loved her nearly as much as she loved them. There was never a time in her life where she didn’t have a four-legged companion trotting at her heels.
Suzanne’s family extended beyond just the family tree, and she was surrounded by a deep and devoted stable of friends all her life. While the list is far too long to name them all here, friends like Debbie Willet Yancey, Sheryl Fletcher, Lynette Warman, Beth Pederson, Tami Kirkman, Charlotte Chronkhite, and Carol Zaretski were with Suzanne through thick and thin - from Drill Team at T.C. Marsh to the Outlaw Quilters, and beyond.
An active member of the United Methodist Church for most of her adult life, Suzanne had a deep and abiding faith in God in Heaven, and devoted her time and energy to spreading His word and doing His works on Earth.
What’s the first thing that comes to mind when you think of Suzanne? If you didn’t answer “Quilting!” then you don’t get a gold star. Suzanne loved to quilt (and generally sew/make/craft things with fabric), and she wasn’t just good at it, she was one of the best. Suzanne quilted for over 20 years, and has had quilts entered in nearly every major show and expo around the country, winning multiple awards and medals through the years. She always had a knack for needle work, and she started with needlepointing, cross-stitching, and general craft sewing, eventually elevating her craft to big, beautiful quilts that have brought joy to scores of people. Her style was unique, her skill unequaled, and her artistry unquestionable. She was a pillar of the quilting community for decades and will be remembered for the many wonderful pieces she brought into the world.
Suzanne is lovingly remembered for her kind, caring nature, and the way she always made time for others when they needed it most. Her love-language was gift giving, and she poured herself into every gift she ever gave, no matter how small or seemingly inconsequential. If you have something Suzanne gifted you, hold onto it, it was her way of saying she loved you, even when she couldn’t bring herself to say the words out loud. We couldn’t have asked for a better mother, sister, and friend to our family, and we will miss Suzanne every day. Her memory will live on in our hearts, the hearts of those who knew her, and in every quilt and piece of fabric we carry forward with us.
Suzanne was preceded in death by her husband, Ken; her mother, Peg; her father, Allen; her brother, Rick; her grandparents Clarkie and Irma; and her sweet dog Whiskey. Suzanne is survived by her sons, Kenneth and his partner Candace, Matthew and his wife Bethany, Kevan and his wife Katy; as well as her daughter Kristine; her grandchildren Nathan and Allyson; sister Stacey Conley and husband Lowell Conley; nephew Rick; niece Alexis; and her loyal hound Bowie the Border Collie.
A Celebration of Life will take place on April 26th, 2025 at 2:00pm at Preston Hollow Church / Preston Hollow UMC, which is located at 6315 Walnut Hill Lane, Dallas, Texas 75230. In lieu of flowers, we kindly ask you to consider a donation to the American Diabetes Association, which can be made directly through their website at https://diabetes.org.
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