Susan Carol Roberts lived a life marked by enthusiasm, irreverence, exercise, whole grains, helping others, and an uncanny ability to make serious work feel like fun. Her nationally recognized leadership in community development and food security was way ahead of its time, as was her decades of effortless marathon running and mid 80s Blue Rodeo fandom. But she was so much more than that.
As a kid, she grew up in Charlottetown, PEI, but with a physician for a father she also spent stints in Germany and Whitehorse, Yukon. Mom would eventually attend Acadia University where she led varsity field hockey and basketball teams, earning straight As and Female Athlete of the Year accolades, and ultimately induction into the Acadia Sports Hall of Fame. Her crew of amazing Acadia pals became friends for life, and she would also become an active member of the Acadia Alumni Association and a regular at Homecoming events with her sons, Jeff and Dave.
And what an incredible Mom she was for her sons and to everyone else who entered her orbit. She had an inordinate tolerance for antics of young adult yahoos, always turning a blind eye at just the right time, but remained anchored in strong principles and an ability to always see the big picture. She taught us all how to dream big, make those dreams become reality, and then help others do the same. Mom believed deeply that everyone had something special to contribute and everybody deserved a fair shot at any given opportunity (especially if they ate a high fibre diet without complaint and exercised regularly). "Mom" as she was known to so many, will forever be remembered as the wild and fun Mom who was cool without trying, and always up for an adventure in between fitness pursuits, motorcycle rides, work commitments, and the odd cigarette. She raised the boys mostly in Halifax, though she hauled them to Cincinnati, Ohio for a year in the 80s when she completed her Masters in Education at the University of Cincinnati. That was a life-changing event for all three, a reset of sorts, setting a keel for the YOLO decades to come.
Shortly after the return to Halifax, Mom met Jack Wenaus and it was soulmates at first sight. Jack's adoration for her was – and will always be – as deep and pure as any love on the face of the earth. "Mom and Jack" kicked things into overdrive, joyously adventuring down many paths, beginning with a move to Whitehorse in 1990. Life with Mom at the wheel went something like this:
We're going to move to the Yukon.
We're going to move to Edmonton.
We're getting Edmonton Eskimo season tickets (for 27 consecutive years).
Now we're getting Oiler's tickets and helping with the Copper Jackets (and p.s. we'll lead a bunch of community volunteer projects).
We're going to buy the cottage at the end of Friendly Lane.
We are also going to move to an acreage on a hill in the prairies.
We're going to go to Fiji for the Y2K millennium.
We’re going to hike the Chilkoot Trail.
We’re going to hike the El Camino.
We're going to build a cob oven.
We're going to bike the Oregon Coast.
We're going to bike across Canada.
We're going to move to Jasper.
And finally, we're going to move home to PEI.
Be it leading the charge for Whitehorse's first ever ski hill (now Mt. Sima), launching a school-lunch program for Edmonton children in need, facilitating capacity building for First Nations, rooting loudly for sports teams (Oil, Esks, Axemen, Scona, Grifs!), or eventually persuading governments to rethink Canada's food and agriculture systems, Mom was always in it to win it, consistently achieving the objective while bringing everyone along. How Jack survived and supported all of this is a testament to his love and commitment to his cherished Sweet-Darling-Princess Susan. No matter what, “he was in.” And finally, after 20+ years of being turned down by the ever-independent Susan Roberts, they officially married in 2006 (but damned if she'd change her surname, though she probably would have taken Cuddy). All the while, Mom held strong to her original training as a registered dietitian, baking way too healthy muffins that - honestly - tasted more like sawdust than a treat. Oh well.
In late 2019 it became clear that something was not right with Mom. When a covid fog engulfed the world, her own fog set in and she would soon be diagnosed with Alzheimer's. Mercifully, Mom's experience with this ferocious and unpredictable disease was as tempered and manageable as one could hope. No aggression. Always cheery and somehow content. She would show big smiles when someone familiar came in the room, or when she was actually able to make her feet work. It was the immobility that was weirdest for so many of us. The woman who could run for hours, bike for days, and never sat still, now rendered immobile.
Susan Carol Roberts passed away peacefully at the Prince Edward Home on her beloved Isle with Jack, Jeff, Jackie, and Dave by her side.
She was predeceased by several rescued cats and one Ohioan hamster, but more importantly by her parents, Ruth and Athol Roberts, her younger brother Dave Roberts, her older sister Nancy Prowse, and her cherished grandson Jackson Leith Wright, whose memory remained close to her heart.
Left in this world are her two sons, Jeff (Jackie Wright) and David (Kate Darling), who carry forward her legacy, except for the muffins; and her husband Jack. She is lovingly remembered by her grandchildren Abby, Rudy, and Wally, who knew her as Nanny, wild and free. They will likely remember Nanny on her foot scooter, big curly gray hair barely contained under a colourful helmet, rolling to the community garden in Jasper. Lovingly remembered by her sisters Linda (Doug) MacTaggart and Hui Jun (Julien) Ding, brotber-in-law Bill Prowes and sister-in-law Sue Roberts.
Susan Roberts always belonged among the wild flowers. And there she is.
Memorial flowers or similar wouldn't be Mom's jam. Instead, please consider making a donation in Mom's name to this Acadia University scholarship that we've set up: https://giving.acadiau.ca/roberts-vincent-wright. And note that there will be a gathering this summer. Online condolences may be made at www.macleanfh.com.
