Another Farewell

On Tuesday afternoon, while checking Facebook, a strange post showed up saying our dear friend Suzi O had passed away. I couldn’t believe it. So, I messaged the person who made the post. It was true. I was blindsided.

 

We knew her in high school as Elaine Benioff. She was in Larry’s class, two years ahead of me. My best friend was in the same class, and I knew many of her friends. (At his reunions, I often have had to tell him who the people were because I knew more of them than he did.)

 

I remembered her because of her gorgeous long, blonde hair.

We attended Larry’s 20^th class reunion in the fall of 1982. On the Sunday morning, following the big celebration on Saturday night, many of us ate brunch in the hotel. We sat with Elaine, now called Suzi. (In high school, she used her middle name. After she graduated, she switched to her first name: Susan. It morphed into Suzi. Her married name was Osborne.) During the meal, we found out she lived on Maui. We had planned a trip there not long after the reunion, so we made arrangements to visit her while we were there.

At the time, she ran a small newspaper, and we met her in the office. She also had become a minister and conducted weddings. Her logo read: Get Married on Maui. She did this for many years. We spent the afternoon with her and thoroughly enjoyed ourselves. From then on, we visited with her each time we went.

 

We attended their subsequent high school reunions and always spent time with Suzi. She was pure joy and a bright light. We looked forward to being with her. We laughed a lot.

 

When she came to Orange County, she often stayed with us and made our house her headquarters.

 

Suzi experienced a house fire and lost her home. She put whatever remained in storage and moved back to Fresno, California. Her mother had started having health issues, so Suzi felt she was needed here.

 

She began to make one or two trips to Bali each year, getting to know people and buying handcrafted items from the local artists: bags, clothing, scarves, tablecloths, jewelry, wooden carvings, gift items etc. (If you read the book Eat, Pray, Love, you may remember the guru mentioned in the book. Suzi knew him. She showed us pictures and told stories about him.)

 

She arranged for “Bali Boutiques,” hosted in private homes (sort of like Tupperware parties), where she sold her wares. I hosted several of these for her and invited my friends. The best part of hosting was having her stay here. She usually arrived the day before, and we played. She often stayed for a few days afterward, and we had more opportunities for fun.

 

In August of 2010, we held an Arts Festival at our church. When I mentioned it to Suzi, she immediately said she wanted to take part. She secured a space and sold her items there. She did very well.

 

The day of the festival was my birthday. I stopped by her booth and pointed out a couple of items I really liked. Unbeknownst to me, she talked Larry into getting me a gorgeous blue stone pendant. I love it and have worn it often.

 

By the next time she came, she had found new venues: senior living centers. Some worked well for her. Others, not so much. But her joie de vis was contagious. She genuinely loved people, and they were attracted to her. On one trip down to Orange County, one of her senior homes cancelled. She asked if I knew of any. I told her about the one my mother had lived in, and she made arrangements for a show there. I went along with her since I still knew many of the residents and staff. We spent a fun day. I don’t think she made too much money, but she charmed everyone, and we laughed a lot.

 

In 2012, they celebrated their 50^th class reunion. The party was held in Balboa. We invited Suzi to stay with us, but she wasn’t even sure she could make it because her mom wasn’t doing well. She said she’d meet us at the party, which she did.

She left early to drive straight back to Fresno. Her mother died shortly thereafter, and she moved back to Maui, the place she loved best.

 

In 2015, Larry and I celebrated our fiftieth wedding anniversary. A week later, we left for a two-week vacation in Hawaii. Our first stop was Maui, where we stayed a week with Suzi. She had planned activities for every day we were with her. She got tickets for Noises Off at the local theater. Suzi was very active in the theater, appearing on stage several times,

 

We joined some of the other theater folks for dinner before the show. We really enjoyed this delightful farce.

 

On Friday night, Kahului held a street fair with food and music and booths. Mostly, we walked the main street with her as Suzi met and greeted friends. We became convinced she knew everyone on the island.

Another day, we arranged to have brunch with the gentleman who inspired the protagonist of our mysteries, Agapé Jones. We invited Suzi to join us. Not too surprisingly, she and he already knew each other as well as many mutual friends.

 

We were plotting a new mystery at the time and were looking for a senior living facility on Maui to include in the book. I had mentioned this to her before we arrived. Being Suzi, she’d arranged for a tour of the best facility on the island, where her friend was the director.

 

On Saturday morning, we went to the marketplace at the college. I found a beautiful caftan and several gift items. Larry bought a T-shirt.

 

Later that evening, she hosted a potluck party. Included were some of the same people with whom we had eaten dinner the night of the play. We took part in one of her traditional games: a version of charades where we acted out the names of famous people. We broke into two teams. Although some of the players were quite competitive, it was more about the camaraderie and laughs. Oh, and the great food. We stayed up late because no one wanted to go home.

 

In 2017, Larry’s class held their 55^th reunion. Suzi came and stayed with us. She arrived early, and we spent some time with her. We attended the event together, and had a great time, as always.

2017 – Photo by Gary Bosley

The following morning, she left to see Fr. Ed Benioff (a cousin, I think) installled as pastor of Church of the Good Shepherd in L.A.  She took a dedicated copy of our book "The Memory Keeper" to him as a gift.

She later went to a spa near San Diego. While there, she ran into our friend, the inspiration for our retired detective. We didn’t know he was in town and didn’t see him, but she did.

 

Last October, they held a 75^th birthday party for the class. Suzi had planned to come, and we had expected her to stay with us. Unfortunately, she had to cancel. Her landlord wanted her to move so he could rent the house to a family member.

 

While in the moving process, she fell and broke her back. Thank goodness, she had great friends who helped her with the move and took care of her until she healed.

 

Through the years, we remained in touch through email and Facebook.

 

Her birthday parties became legendary on Maui. We always received an invitation, but somehow, the timing never worked out. She had entertainment—some of the best musicians in Hawaii. A large crowd turned out for the food and music and dancing, and she had a ball.

 

Because of the virus, her usual extravaganza didn’t happen last month. But we expected to see her again once the current situation allowed travel.

 

This is why the news of her death was such a shock. She had cancer. Later, I learned that when she died, she was surrounded by friends and lots of love.

 

I am grateful for the wonderful memories we shared with her, and we will miss her terribly.

Suzi’s birthday 2018 – photo by Bruce Forrester

Somewhere in heaven she is organizing a big party with some of her friends like the recently departed Willie K. And she is laughing. Aloha, Suzi!