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Ruth Suzanne Blum Nace ’45

Ruth Suzanne Blum Nace ’45, September 7, 2013, in Ann Arbor, Michigan. Sue studied at Reed for two years, leaving to work in San Francisco as a store manager. A renewed friendship with Margaret Nace (Mitter) ’43 there led to her marriage to Margaret’s brother George W. Nace ’43 in 1946. The year before, Sue completed a BA in political science and journalism at the University of Oregon. George attended graduate school in biology in Los Angeles and San Francisco and did postdoctoral study in Brussels, Belgium, and Washington, D.C. He taught at Duke University and joined the faculty at the University of Michigan at Ann Arbor in 1956. During these years, Sue raised their four children, volunteered for remedial reading programs in public school classrooms, and worked with the International Neighbors program. When her children were grown, Sue became a substitute teacher and a proofreader for the book manufacturer Braun & Brumfield. “As a lifeguard in her youth, she developed a lifelong avocation for physical exercise,” her family reported. “She was a stickler for the proper use of words and grammar, an advocate for gracious living and sharing of ideas across cultures, and, as she described herself to the end, ‘fat and sassy.’” Sue enjoyed baking and stocked the kitchen pantry with homemade bread, rolls, pastries, and pies, as well as homemade preserves, jams, and pickles. Sue once reported to Reed, “My life is full, and like many others, I deplore the paucity of hours in the day to fulfill all my goals, but I feel blessed that I have sufficient health and alertness to achieve most of them.” George died in 1987. Survivors include two daughters and two sons, and four grandchildren.

Appeared in Reed magazine: June 2015