Susan Panther

1949 - 2025

Susan Carole Panther, formerly of Hammond, died peacefully in her sleep early Wednesday morning, Oct. 22, at Commonwealth Senior Living in Abingdon, Virginia, where she had been residing since March of 2024. Sue was 75. She had struggled with dementia for several years and finally succumbed to that disease.

Sue was an educator who was highly focused in her work but also social and fun-loving. She had two passions, education and social justice. She worked tirelessly at both.

She grew up in a working class neighborhood in Hammond, one of six children of James Augustus Eckenrode and Lottie Mae Eckenrode (Doty). Her father was a house painter and muralist. Mother stayed home. The high school that served her neighborhood didn't offer a college prep curriculum, so 15-year-old Sue wrote a letter to the superintendent of schools requesting permission to transfer to a high school that did have such a program. Persuaded by her letter, he agreed.

She worked her way though college at Purdue University/Calumet, first as a secretary, then as a student counselor, finally as director of a federal program, earning bachelor and masters degrees along the way. In 1990, she joined South Suburban College in South Holland, Illinois, as a dean. She later became Vice-President for Student Affairs after receiving her doctorate in education from Roosevelt University in Chicago in 1997.

In addition to her official duties at South Suburban, "Dr. Sue" served as a mentor for students, especially those who were struggling financially or with heavy out-of-school responsibilities, helping them figure out ways to stay in school and finish their degrees.

Sue was a dyed-in-the-wool Democrat who met Obama in Chicago before he became a Senator, much less President. She supported organizations that worked for social justice - The Southern Poverty Law Center, ACLU, Amnesty International.

She wasn't all work. She sang in a choir. She loved R&B music. She loved to dance. She loved the Chicago Idlewilders, the social club that let her enjoy both R&B and dance. She made many life-long friends from her activities with the club. She loved to fish.

After retirement in 2006, she moved to Florida, where in 2009, she met William Blanton, a retired newspaper journalist. Like Sue, he also loved to fish. They were married in 2010 and lived together in Fort Myers until 2024 when they moved to Abingdon. During their years in Florida, they traveled extensively - to visit family, attend Idlewilders events and often to explore fishing venues.

Sue was always outgoing and gracious. Even deep in dementia, bed- and wheelchair-bound, unable to speak except with word-like sounds, punctuated by occasional outbursts of real words and sentences that, remarkably, always seemed to be appropriate to what was going on, she still greeted the aides who cared for her with smiles and sometimes with pats as they moved her around. Occasionally, those pats would turn into vice-like hand or arm holds. Right up to the end, she had a powerful grip. In the common area of the assisted living facility, she'd smile and sometimes wave to people she saw regularly.

In addition to her husband, William Blanton, Sue is survived by two sisters, Diana Turner of Senoia, Georgia, and Miriam Eckenrode of Highland, Indiana, three nieces and two nephews, five grand nephews, three grand nieces, three adult stepchildren, three step-grandchildren and three step-great grandchildren.

In lieu of flowers, send contributions to The Southern Poverty Law Center.