Susan T. Reynolds

Susan Terese (Deneault) Reynolds, 66, of Penn Yan, NY, formerly of Hammondsport, NY, completed the story of her life in her home on June 1, 2012 after a two year long battle, which she called a dance, with metastatic breast cancer.

Susan’s story began on January 23, 1946 in Brattleboro, VT when she was born to George and Frances Deneault who preceded her in death.

She graduated from St. Michael’s High School in 1963 and earned a Bachelor of Science Degree in general speech in 1967 from Syracuse University.

She enjoyed a twenty-six year career as a speech therapist in the Penn Yan Elementary School District until her retirement in 2001. In this chapter of her life, she was not only known as the speech teacher in the school but as a storyteller who vividly shared folktales, myths, and other stories with all the students. She did not just teach speech, however. She taught her friends and family about love, personal strength, and appreciating each day. She was fiercely independent but also showed how to gracefully accept help when needed.

The narrative of the later parts of her short life is filled with time spent traveling, engaging in her hobby of buying and selling antiques, and continuing to tell her stories, usually to her grandchildren and their friends or classmates.

Susan was known for her bright smile, her inviting and accepting warmth, and her generous spirit. She saw the best in people and inspired others to be their best. She had a wonderful sense of humor and was able to laugh about anything, even cancer. She danced through treatments, setbacks and surgeries, always finding a way to see them in a positive light. She viewed all of life’s adverse moments as experiences that just make the story richer.

Susan enriched many people’s lives, especially the lives of those who survive her. Her loved ones will continue to tell her story, because although it was short, it was complete, and full, and one worth sharing and remembering. They will remember her every time they have the opportunity to dance. She is survived by her daughter Morgan (Mark) Wasikonis and their children Taylor, Matthew, and Adalee, her son Joseph (Tammy) Reynolds and their daughters Kaitlyn, Cara, and Clare. She is also survived by her life partner Christopher Kelly and his daughter Christine (Matthew) Barber and their sons Jonathan and Adam, his daughter Tricia (Glenn) Berger and their children Caitlynn and Brandon, and his daughter Cynthia (John) Casey and their children Alexandra and Nathan. She is also survived by her siblings Christine (Arnold) Wilson, Mary Jane Bibeau, Elaine (William) Millerick, Brian (Caitlin) Deneault, and Kathleen Cassidy, and many cousins, nieces, nephews, and dear friends.

A Memorial Service will be held at the Norton Chapel on the Keuka College Campus, in Keuka Park, NY on Sunday June 24, 2012 at 2pm. A reception in celebration of her life will follow at 3pm at the Lightner Library on the Keuka College Campus.

Memorial contributions will be gratefully accepted at Keuka Comfort Care Home, PO Box 107, Penn Yan, NY 14527 or the Pluta Cancer Center, 125 Red Creek Drive, Rochester, NY 14623.

Friends and family may sign the guestbook at www.townsendwoodfuneralchapel.com