Susan Mccleary Boyes

Susan McCleary Boyes, 72, of Marietta passed away April 4, 2022, with her husband/boyfriend/lover by her side. She was preceded in death by her parents Bill & Nancy McCleary, and her brother Billy McCleary. She is survived by her husband Steve, her son Lindsey (Wendy), her sister-in-law Beth (Andy), her brother-in-law Mike (Febie), and her grandchildren Chloe Ayn and Madeline.

Sue was born in Staten Island, New York, but because her father was in the tire industry, she moved around the country constantly, requiring her to up her people skills as she was always
the new kid in school. She attended White Station high school in Memphis, studied at the University of Tennessee (GO VOLS), and Akron U. This led to her love of college football, so much so that everyone knew never to call her on a Saturday. She wore orange proudly and cherished every Alabama loss—thank you GEORGIA! Upon graduation, she applied for and became a Delta Air Lines flight attendant in October 1971. She retired in April 2001. She had dreams about flying all the time. She missed interacting with passengers and fellow flight attendants. The number of good letters in her file sent by passengers was astounding.

Her love of people was overshadowed by the number of people who loved her. She loved Mowtown, Stax, and especially Tina Turner. She would yell at Alexa “PLAY TINA!” She was the first one to get up and dance, sing, & laugh. She would constantly screw up the lyrics. If she met you once, she was a friend. If she met you twice, you got a birthday card. Every Year! By the third time, she would say “I love you” …and she meant it.

When she was healthy, she loved playing ALTA tennis. Her most special place was a cottage on Elk Lake in Michigan. She first visited there on her honeymoon. Because this was during the air traffic controller strike, she finagled an interview with Detroit TV about being stuck in the airport. The look on the newspersons face when Sue introduced her mother-in-law Jane, who was also on the trip, was priceless. Sue and Jane became fast friends and drinking buddies, leaving her new husband feeling a bit left out. She would shave her legs down at the lake, until her husband confessed there was a hidden shower. She would spend every summer of her life there, and “go visit Sue” was on everyone’s to-do list. She just loved looking at that lake. It was her therapy. Lately, she worried that she would never see it again, until she was reminded that one way or the other, she would return. Yes, she laughed. She loved her oncologist who helped her beat melanoma and colon cancer, but like her mother, could not beat a brain tumor. She joked that her doctor’s appointments were “dates”, as it was the only time she left the house during Covid.

There will be a remembrance for her sometime this summer at Elk Lake, with lots of alcohol and Tina blasting from the speakers, with a little Temptations, Eagles and Rocky Top thrown in, because a McCleary deserves an Irish wake.