Susan M. Cater

Susan M. Cater

1949-2024

Susan "Sue" Mary Cater, age 75, of Temperance, MI, passed away on Monday, November 4, 2024, at her residence, surrounded by her loving family, after a long battle with dementia. She was born January 10, 1949, in Toledo, OH, to Paul and Irene (Wilson) Duquette.

Sue married her high school sweetheart, Thomas E. Cater, on April 20, 1968, after dating for five years. They met in the second grade at Regina Coeli Catholic School, but didn't begin their courtship until high school, when she attended Notre Dame Academy. She later transferred to and graduated from Whitney High School, in 1967.

Sue was a trained cosmetologist. She was the owner of Michelle's Beauty Shop from 1973-1980, which she named after her oldest daughter. After the birth of her third child, Sue decided to sell the shop, and primarily stay home with her children. While Susan was a cosmetologist by trade, she would have said her greatest vocation was being a mother, to not only her four children, but to the many, many, children that considered her a second mother through the years. When her youngest daughter graduated from high school, Sue went back to work, and became the owner and operator of Express Lube Oil Change. For 13 years, she was the friendly face behind the counter, and again became a second mom to many employees, and even customers, through those years. Sue retired when she sold Express Lube in 2014.

During the years she spent raising her children, Sue was a fixture in the grade schools they attended. She ran the Girl Scout Program, and was a troop leader for all three of her daughters, at both Regina Coeli and Greenwood Elementary. She was always the room mom, an active parents' club member, and an art docent. Sue volunteered virtually for anything and everything the schools needed. When her oldest daughter wanted to be a cheerleader, she reinvigorated the cheerleading program at Regina Coeli. Her greatest accomplishment was likely founding the Washington Township Girls' Softball League in 1991. When her younger daughters wanted to play softball, and the school only had a boys baseball team, she decided to not only start a team, but started a league that she helped run until 2004, that still exists today. At one point during her leadership tenure, the league had approximately 60 teams servicing 1,000 girls and coaches. Susan also actively volunteered for many organizations, including the Cherry Street Mission, the Toledo Police Department's Retired Senior Volunteer Program, Paws and Whiskers Cat Shelter, and, as a cosmetologist providing free haircuts for individuals infected with HIV, at David's House.

Sue will be best remembered by her family and friends as someone full of energy and compassion. It was unusual to see Sue sitting down, unless she was driving her children and their friends to their activities, cheering on the sidelines for her kids' and grandkids' sporting events, or in the late evening hours, when you would see her with a novel in her hand, or knitting a scarf to donate to those in need.

Over the years, Sue traveled to many places, from accompanying her father to his Navy Seabee reunions, to France as a chaperone for her daughter's French class, to Italy with two of her daughters, to Hawaii for her daughter's wedding, and to many other places with her kids and husband, including Las Vegas, Atlantic City, Florida, Myrtle Beach, Jamaica, and the Dominican Republic. She completely adored her grandkids, and cherished the time they spent together. From reading books with them, to volunteering with them, to being silly with them, it was always a fun time. A particular favorite activity Sue shared with her grandkids was feeding the animals at the African Safari.

While she deeply loved her children and grandchildren with all her heart, her love and compassion spread so much further. If there was someone in need, especially if that someone was a child or a cat, Sue always found a way to help. She routinely sponsored families for holidays, and on numerous occasions, took people into her home to stay. Sue was truly the epitome of someone who would give a stranger the shirt off her back if they needed it.

Sue always kept a house so clean you could have eaten off the floors, and she couldn't keep herself from walking in and immediately beginning to tidy up the houses of her children when she came to visit. She was an immaculate housekeeper and seamstress, and always made extravagant Halloween costumes for her kids.

Susan was preceded in death by her parents; brother, Alphonsus "Butch" Duquette; and mother-in-law, Alice Cater. She is survived by her loving husband of 56 years, Thomas E. Cater; son, Thomas (Maria) Cater; daughters, Michelle Williams, Lyndsey (Daniel) Barnett, and Kristen (Wesley) Wright; grandchildren, Melissa, Jason (Kellie), and Nicole Cater, Mikayla and Troy Williams, Alexa and Jaxson Barnett, and Kaylee Wright; great-granddaughter, Peyton Genovesi; sister-in-law, Pam Lawrence; nieces, Marnie (Douglas) Gogol, and Allison Groth; nephews, John (Sasha) Lawrence, and Andy Duquette; and many other loved ones.

Family and friends may visit Thursday, November 7th, from 2:00 p.m.-8:00 p.m. at the Sujkowski Funeral Home Northpointe, 114-128 East Alexis Rd., Toledo, Ohio. Funeral services will begin Friday at 11:00 a.m., at the Funeral Home, with Richard Sauerlender officiating. Interment will follow at Toledo Memorial Park Cemetery, Sylvania, Ohio. In lieu of flowers, the family suggests memorial contributions to St. Jude Children's Research Hospital in Sue's honor.