Susie Butler

Effie Neal “Susie” Butler left us to be at home with the Lord on the evening of July 5, 2012. “Mimi,” as Susie preferred to be called, is survived by Glen H. Butler, her beloved husband of 61 years; her brother, Phil Morton of Ripley, Mississippi; her children, F. Lee Butler of Houston, Texas, and Ellen Butler Funke of Covington, Louisiana; her grandchildren Matthew Funke, Jenny Funke Geesey, Katie Butler Tahbaz, Andrew Butler and Hannah Butler and her great-grandson, Lucas Geesey, who was Mimi’s best friend.

Susie was born in Ripley, Mississippi, on April 11, 1927. She attended school at the Mississippi State College from Women, Blue Mountain College and graduated from the Carraway School of Nursing in Birmingham, Alabama. Later, she obtained her BS degree in Allied Health from Our Lady of Holy Cross College. Susie worked for many years as a registered nurse. She began her career working at the hospital in her hometown of Ripley, Mississippi. After her marriage she moved to her adopted hometown of New Orleans and worked as a registered nurse at Baptist Hospital. The last 22 years of her career Susie worked as a school nurse in numerous schools in the Orleans Parish Public School system.

Susie was a devoted member of the Edgewater Baptist Church and was past president of the Raphael Semmes Chapter of the United Daughters of the Confederacy. Although she was born in rural Mississippi, Susie considered herself a Cajun by choice. After her retirement, she took up Cajun dancing and for years it was a focus of her life. She and Glen became volunteer dance instructors and won a number of Cajun dance contests. In more recent years Susie was an active participant in the New Orleans People Program and was an avid supporter of her beloved Philadelphia Flyers hockey team.

Friends and family are invited to attend a Memorial Service on Sunday, July 8, 2012 at Jacop Schoen & Son Funeral Home, 3827 Canal St. Visitation will be from 12:00 noon until 2:00 with the Memorial Service to follow. To further celebrate Susie’s life, an additional gathering of friends and fimily will be held at Michaul’s Cajun Restaurant, 840 St. Charles Avenue from 3:00 to 5:00. A private internment will take place at a later date.

In lieu of flowers, anyone wishing to do so is encouraged to make a donation to Susie’s beloved People Program, 2240 Lakeshore Drive, New Orleans, LA, 70122. Express condolences at www.schoencanalstreet.com