Goodbye to a Beloved Team Member

 It was surprising – and saddening – to receive the news earlier this week that Sue Kilpatrick, our intrepid weather watcher, had passed away. I had known for weeks that Sue was sick but I stubbornly held onto the thought (hope) that she would soon return to writing her column that, for about 13 years, was perched across from mine on page 2 of the CV Weekly.

Sue came into my life almost 13 years ago right after the first issue of the CV Weekly hit the streets. I was working from my home office, scrambling, trying to plan what next week’s paper would look like and questioning whether or not it was even a wise idea to have launched the Crescenta Valley Weekly. Sue called and, after complimenting me on the paper, asked if I was looking for a weather person.

Now one thing I learned while at the Crescenta Valley Sun was that many times people would volunteer to write a column on their specialty – business, medicine, travel, whatever – but typically, after a few columns, these writers would fall off the face of the earth, never to be heard from again. While it may look easy, writing a column on a regular basis is hard work. You have to come up with an idea you think readers would relate to or benefit from, then craft that idea into something an editor won’t cringe reading.

I politely told Sue that I would give it some thought.

A week or so later, she called again asking me if I could use her services. I liked that the idea appealed to her and admired her tenacity in reaching out to me for a second time. I decided to take a gamble and said yes.

I never regretted that decision. Every week, like clockwork, Sue’s article would come in. Usually she filled her column with text but, every now and then, she’d pop in some artwork. Through her I learned about the days in the Crescenta Valley before I came to live here, grew to love her beloved pups, discovered butterfly gardens and admired her family – all while finding out what would be the upcoming days’ temperatures.

I know that Sue’s homey tone resonated with our readers. One in particular, who lives out of the area but to whom we mail a newspaper every week, has oftentimes sent a note of appreciation for the paper overall but Sue’s column in particular. After getting the news of Sue’s death I sent him a personal note letting him know of the changes here; he promptly sent a card of sympathy to our office along with a box of chocolates to remind us, with every bite, of our sweet Sue.

Her work with the CV Weekly extended beyond our pages; Sue would often be found on our Montrose Christmas Parade “float” (I use the term loosely), delighted to wave to the thousands who cheered us on as we traveled along Honolulu Avenue. She oftentimes attended the celebration we hosted for those designated by our readers as the Finest.

And that doesn’t even touch on her involvement with Prom Plus, an organization near and dear to my heart.

Sue will not only be missed by the staff here at the CV Weekly but also by friends and readers throughout the Crescenta Valley, which she called home her entire life.

To learn more about Sue, I encourage you to read Mary O’Keefe’s article.