Sue met her husband online, in a single parent chat room group. They communicated for almost a year before Tim flew to meet her in person in December 1999. Once they met, they knew they were inseparable and Sue moved from Florida to Iowa in early 2000 with her young daughter. Tim and Sue were married in September 2002. Sue was well aware of the various medical issues her husband had endured and one of them was knowing he could need a 2nd kidney transplant. It was a private joke between them, with Sue always saying, I have a spare, so you can have one of mine. In February 2004, they got the news that indeed Tim needed a 2nd kidney transplant. They held out hope for a miracle and they got it – in the form of a match between Sue and Tim. In June 2004, they underwent the kidney transplant and it looked like his health was going to take a healthy turn.
Unfortunately Type 1 diabetes does not discriminate and Tim continued with complications from that. Not only diabetes, but because of some of the anti-rejection medications that he was on, he developed various skin cancers. They battled this together, through radiation and surgery and a second surgery when the cancer came back 8 months later. Together through it all, they raised their daughter, whom Tim had adopted and enjoyed life with Tim’s son also. They ran a successful business together and Sue also maintained a job first as a language interpreter for the local hospital, then as the office administrator for a local business. Life seemed to be going well, watching the children grow and welcoming grandchildren into the family.
2017 became the year that everything would change. In March 2017, Sue’s father passed away from a sudden cardiac arrest. In August of that same year, Tim’s father passed away from complications of a broken hip. And as if that weren’t enough to try and endure and get through the grieving process, Tim suffered a cardiac arrest in October 2017 from complications with an infection in his bloodstream. In that moment, Sue’s world came crumbling down and she was now faced with not only the grief of her family members, but her very best friend and husband.
Reading was always her passion, but she started to write in order to get through the grieving process. Journal upon journal of entries has helped her on this journey to discovering herself, growing and grieving. Sue has shared her journey through grief through several widows groups on social media, meeting other widows in person and trying to let others know that they are not alone. She looks forward to sharing her hope, courage and continued journey so that it may touch someone else out there struggling through the same issues.
Sue can be found on Instagram and Twitter as BrunetteSuzyQ
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