Farewell, Ms Burgess...

I painted two portraits of her whole family,now is time to pay my final salute to her.


Longtime City Council member Susan Burgess dies
By Steve Lyttle
Jun. 16, 2010
4/23/08 - Susan Burgess introduces former president Bill Clinton at an event in Hillsborough, N.C. Pailin Wedel/The News & Observer


Susan Burgess never slowed down

Jason Burgess: \'I\'m going to give it my all\'


Susan Burgess, a leading public figure in Charlotte for the past two decades, died Wednesday morning after a battle with cancer.

Mayor Anthony Foxx said Burgess died about 6:25 a.m. at her home, surrounded by her husband of 43 years, Patrick, and by her four children.

The Charlotte community mourns the loss of one of the strongest, most courageous public servants we have ever known, Foxx said.

The mayor ordered flags in Charlotte to be flown at half-staff for the rest of the week.

Funeral services have not been announced.

Susan Burgess was a remarkable woman, Gov. Bev Perdue said. She loved her family and her friends, and she was passionate about making Charlotte the Queen City of America.

I know nobody who cared more for their city or community, former longtime Charlotte Mayor Pat McCrory said of Burgess, in an interview Wednesday morning on WBT.

Foxx said Burgess left an indelible mark throughout our community in public education, arts and culture, housing, the environment and countless other ways. She battled cancer by refusing to be bound by it, maintaining her zest for living and her desire to keep serving others.

Burgess, 64, resigned her city council seat last week, making her final public appearance and asking the council to appoint her son, Jason, as her replacement. The council granted that request Monday evening, appointing her son to fill out her unexpired term.

Burgess announced more than a month ago that doctors had not been able to stop the spread of the colorectal cancer, and she was being transferred to hospice care. She was diagnosed with the cancer in early 2007 and underwent surgery and chemotherapy.

We will all miss her strength and her leadership, but what I will miss most of all is the woman who wasn\'t afraid to fight, Perdue said.

Born in Charleston, W.Va., Burgess and her husband had four children and six grandchildren.

Burgess was an honors graduate from Florida International University and earned a masters degree in public health from the University of Alabama-Birmingham School of Medicine. She worked as a public health administrator and church administrator.

She moved into public service in 1990 when she was elected to the Charlotte-Mecklenburg School Board, eventually serving as chair of the board from 1995 to 1997. Then she moved to Charlotte City Council, winning election to an at-large seat in 1999.



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