Suanne McNeely

MOREHEAD CITY, N.C. -- Suanne Harbison McNeely, 87, of Morehead City passed away Thursday, Dec. 20, 2018, at Vidant Medical Center in Greenville, North Carolina, after a sudden stroke.

According to her wishes, her body was cremated, but prior to cremation, her body served others. It was transported to Duke University in Durham, North Carolina, where sections of her skin were transplanted onto burn victims and other patients who needed it. Services will be private. Her ashes will be interred at Pleasant Hill Cemetery in Fruitland next to those of her late husband, Don McNeely, who preceded her in death Nov. 8, 2015.

Sue McNeely was born Aug. 30, 1931, in Clayton, Missouri, to Norman and Eva Hutchason Harbison. She was a descendant of the Kirkpatrick and Darby families, some of the earliest settlers of Scott County.

She was a 1949 graduate of Normandy High School in St. Louis County, Missouri. As a high school junior, she was chosen as a representative to the annual Girls State convention in Jefferson City, where she was elected secretary of state. She attended Southeast Missouri State University in Cape Girardeau, where she performed with the Terpsichore modern dance troupe and was a member of Clio sorority. In 1952, she was crowned Sagamore Queen. She received a Bachelor of Science in education in 1953.

She wed Don McNeely on Aug. 15, 1953, and they were married for 62 years.

In the early 1950s, Sue McNeely taught physical education and art at Shawnee High School in Wolf Lake, Illinois, and later taught at May Greene Elementary School, Lorimier Elementary School and Schultz Middle School in Cape Girardeau.

In 1971, she served as co-chairwoman of the Cape Girardeau Historical Association's Heritage Ball, celebrating the Missouri sesquicentennial.

In the 1970s, she was hired by Saint Francis Medical Center in Cape Girardeau to work with behavioral health inpatients through dance and movement therapy.

She was a long-time member of First Presbyterian Church of Cape Girardeau, where she served as a deacon. She was also a past member of the board of directors of Pleasant Hill Cemetery Association in Fruitland.

Sue was a proud and active member of the P.E.O. Sisterhood and was a past president of chapter FY in Cape Girardeau. She was a member of chapter CK in Morehead City, and in 2016 became a founding member of chapter CY in Pine Knoll Shores, North Carolina. She was preparing to celebrate her 50th anniversary as a P.E.O.

Sue loved to entertain guests and always took pride in setting a beautiful table. She enjoyed playing bridge and was in the same bridge club for decades. She and Don loved to ski and took annual ski trips to Colorado for many years. After Don's retirement, they traveled all over the world, including the United Kingdom, Ireland, Australia, New Zealand, Argentina, Chile, Panama, Scandinavia, the Caribbean, Canada, Mexico, Italy, Greece, Japan, South Africa and many other destinations.

In late 2009, Sue and Don moved to Morehead City to be near their children. In early 2018, a couple of years after Don's death, Sue sold their home and moved to Carteret Landing Assisted Living in Morehead City.

The family wishes to express its deepest thanks to the management and staff of Carteret Landing Assisted Living, Dr. Cas Cader and staff and Susan Staley.

Sue McNeely is survived by her daughters, Donna Sue McNeely (Joseph) Burke of Vail, Arizona, and Laura Beth McNeely (Marc) Montocchio of Morehead City; grandson Marco James Di Pasquale of Los Angeles; stepgrandsons Christopher Lee Davis of Austin, Texas, and Bernard Wyatt Burke of Rockville, Maryland; her brother, Jack Ross Harbison of Creve Coeur, Missouri; loving sisters-in-law; and numerous nieces and nephews.

In addition to her husband, she was also preceded in death by her parents and infant son, Scott Harbison McNeely.

In lieu of flowers, the family requests Sue's memory be honored with donations to the Suanne Harbison McNeely Scholarship in Dance at Southeast Missouri State University, c/o Trudy Lee, One University Plaza, MS7300, Cape Girardeau, MO 63701; First Presbyterian Church, 235 Broadway, Cape Girardeau, MO 63701; or Pleasant Hill Cemetery Association, c/o Leanne Schenimann, 474 Duskin Lane, Jackson, MO 63755.

Wilkerson Funeral Home of Greenville assisted the family with arrangements.