Susan McKay

Susan McKay passed on September 11, 2021 after a challenging, painful and courageous journey with breast
cancer. She was surrounded by her three daughters and left this world peacefully, fully embraced by their
comfort and love—a circle completed the way it should be.
Let it be known that this obituary is the first to be written by Diana “DeeDee” Sue Porter in honor of a
truly complex yet magnificent soul: my mother, Susan “Bube,” “Sue,” “Suzie,” “GoatMama” (separate story)
McKay. And a very special thank you to Zoey for being my editor. It is a privilege to ponder and sum up
someone’s massive life in just a few words. I hope you enjoy, laugh, and find some part of yourself reflected
here, and may you all have peace and comfort as we continue to reflect on and remember all of the joys,
sorrows, pain and laughter we had with her. Thank you.
Susan was initially diagnosed with cancer in 2007. In 2017 it came back as stage IV. In 2019 Susan had a large
stroke, leaving her with expressive aphasia and writing deficits. The aphasia was tough, but she never stopped
working to improve it and didn't let it stop her from living her life and communicating with people. She was a
social butterfly, after all.
Susan loved her family and friends. She had many friends in different realms based on her skills, interests and
passions, and she would do anything for them. Being an empath, she always made time for people, especially
acquaintances who needed a caring ear or some intuitive advice. That was very hard on her young family, even
as they became adults! A life of service to others always includes personal sacrifices, and that could be a tough
pill to swallow. It was also a tough act to follow. Her girls are a testament that her show has indeed gone on,
which made Susan extremely proud.
Susan had several professions throughout her life. As a homemaker in the 70s and 80s when divorce was still
taboo and a hot topic for gossip, she sewed her family’s clothes and toys, baked, gardened, canned and
preserved the family food, and ran a full ceramic business out of her basement. “DeeDee, Carrie, Kristen” was
the mantra that kept her going. Their Christmas and birthday joys were her motivation, and she always made
sure Santa came. She was frugal and saved rolled quarters because “They add up fast, girls.” Her children spent
summers working alongside her in the garden. Harvesting the summer’s bounty was a tremendous source of
hard work and delicious sense of pride for her, and the fruits of her labor were a work of art on the basement
shelves. She was always delighted to pull summer out of the freezer in winter. In 1981, she was introduced to a
new way to provide for her family when a high school reunion led her to the field of echocardiography. She was
an echocardiographer for 21 years, which she absolutely flourished at. She later moved to Brookline to further
her finances and had many patients who were Jewish, some survivors; she really embraced the culture and
loved her patients. She decided she wanted to be called “Bube” instead of “Grandma” and so, she was Bube
(sometimes Bub). She was always keeping herself involved in the lives of her children and grandchildren and
likened herself as “Matriarch,” a tribute to a Celtic ancestry that drove her kids nuts at times—especially when
they became parents. After becoming disabled from a work-related injury, she became an entrepreneur; she
made quilts and jewelry and crocheted avidly. “Bube’s Blankets” were a favorite gift with her family—the prints
were carefully chosen for each recipient, and you could wrap yourself up in her love. She was also a psychic
medium, believed in Angels (and, for that matter, Santa, gnomes, and the protection of gargoyles which can be
found in her garden), and helped not just the living, but those “Beyond the Veil”.
Being an open-minded, curious, and highly creative person, Susan had many pastimes and loves that
received her utmost attention: autobiographies/biographies, movies, the arts. Remembering family history was
deeply important to her. She liked to teach and was a critical and deep thinker. She had a large library, played
guitar and piano, loved to sing, and painted with various mediums. No, not with fellow psychics ;) She
performed with the local theatre. She was a lover of wildlife, nature and its rhythms, Native American people
(she made regular contributions to support these souls), her garden, and owls. Shopping with her family and
looking at everything was a major addiction of hers. Classical, folk, The Beatles, Windham Hill—she loved all
kinds of music, and would dance when she could. She loved to be silly and laugh and enjoyed deeply connecting
with babies, children, and cats. Her green thumb was insane and she had cacti growing through the roof. She
stayed true to her “hippie” nature in many ways and her style of dress reflected that, along with a celestial kind
of flair. She was truly unique and in the last decades didn’t give a damn what anyone thought about her. She was
her ultimate self.
Susan lived life her way and she wasn’t done;
Sinking her Spirit which signaled for Its final release to The Great Beyond.
It broke her heart.
It shattered ours.
But that is where she continues to be—healing us, when we go to look for her there.
There, and “Beyond the Veil.”
------------------------------------
Susan was born on May 23, 1948 in Boston, MA to Stanley and Corinne McKay. She grew up in Hanson, MA,
graduated in 1966 from Whitman-Hanson, and attended many reunions. Most recently, she had been a
resident of Middleboro, MA for 27 years.
Susan was preceded in death by her father, Stanley, her mother, Corinne, and her sister, Sally. (It is important
to recognize that Corrine died at age 97 just 12 days prior to Susan, and that Sally died last November 2020
from her brief and intense battle with pancreatic cancer. This, obviously, compounds the family’s grief). She is
survived by her three daughters, Diana “DeeDee”, Carrie, and Kristen; her sister, Sandra; her granddaughters,
Brianna, Emily, Zoey, Morgan, and Grace; several nieces and all of their children; and her devoted fiancé, Bruce.
She is also survived by her former husband, Harold Theodore “Teddy.”

Visiting hours are Friday (September 17, 2021) from 6 until 8 p.m. in the O'Neill Funeral Home, 59 Peirce Street (corner of School Street) Middleboro. 

Funeral services on Saturday (September 18, 2021) at 12 Noon in the funeral home. 

Burial will follow in Rock Cemetery, South Middleboro.

Refreshments will follow the interment at 430 Turnpike Street, South Easton.  

Relatives and friends are respectfully invited to attend.  

To send flowers to the family or plant a tree in memory of Susan McKay, please visit our floral store.