Susan Kay O'Hara Fuglem Obituary

Susan Kay O'Hara Fuglem attended Thomas Jefferson High School in Council Bluffs, IA. View the obituary, post a memory, or share a photo about Susan Kay O'hara Fuglem.

Graduation Year	Class of 1967
Date of Passing	Oct 20, 2015
About	Susan O. Fuglem, age 66 of Lakeville, passed away October 20, 2015. Susan was born Susan Kay O’Hara in Council Bluffs, Iowa to Charles and Lela O’Hara. She was the youngest of four siblings, and was always proud to share that she was born on Father’s Day in 1949. Her dad told her she was his gift for Father’s Day that year, and he was so happy to welcome her into their lives. She attended Thomas Jefferson High School in Council Bluffs, and then went on to Drake University in Des Moines, Iowa to major in Journalism. She moved to Missouri and Chicago before landing in St. Paul, MN. On November 2, 1979 she married Robert (Bob) Fuglem, and they moved to Bloomington, MN. Just ten months later, they had their only child, Amanda. Susan stayed home during Amanda’s early years and watched a couple of other children during those years as well. Once Amanda started school, Susan rejoined the workforce outside the home. She worked in a variety of jobs doing editing and marketing, including B. Dalton Books where she was able to work with her sister, Patty. In the 1990’s, Susan made a transition into marketing and communications for healthcare systems. She worked for HealthEast, Allina, and finally North Memorial during her working years. Once her time at North Memorial was through, she worked part-time for Macy’s department store in Burnsville, MN. Still a writer at heart, she would carefully word and punctuate everything she wrote, including her Facebook posts. More than anything, Susan was an animal lover to her core, and enjoyed official pets (Sammy, Clancy, Molly, Cecil, Raucous, Melinda, Waldo, Mimi, Winnie, and her grand-dog, Milo), as well as adopted wild animals that would visit her backyard. People joked that there were signs in the woods directing animals to the Fuglem’s backyard in Lakeville, MN for a place to find a buffet of food any time. She made peanut butter sandwiches, bought bird seed, cracked corn and suet, and put out anything stale for the birds, squirrels, raccoons, crows, possum, deer, and fox. She took it very seriously, and could not leave town without lining up someone to feed her animals outside while she was away. A few years after moving to Lakeville in 1988, Susan took up art classes with the Lakeville Art Guild. Her mother, Lela, was an artist who painted primarily in water colors, and Susan was given that artistic gift as well. She did some work in charcoal and pastels in the early years of art classes, but quickly moved into her primary medium, which was oil painting. Over the years, she produced many paintings, some of which she entered in the Dakota County Fair, and for contests for wine labels at the Cannon River Winery. She also did paintings by request and painted Christmas bulbs for family and friends. Susan loved entertaining, and enjoyed hosting Post Office Christmas parties, Thanksgiving, Christmas, New Year’s, graduation parties, and any excuse to have people over. When the entertainment wasn’t at her house, she loved taking the party to Teresa’s Mexican restaurant in Lakeville, where she had a special place in her heart for the staff, particularly Lupe. She had to seek out Lupe and give him a hug every time they visited Teresa’s. That was the kind, caring, and loving person that Susan was and forever will be in our hearts. Preceded in death by her siblings, Richard O’Hara and Linda Mariano and brother-in-law, Francis ‘Bud’ Ryan. Survived by her loving husband, Bob; daughter, Amanda (Chris) Lee and sister, Patty Ryan, also by other relatives and friends. Funeral Service will be held 11 AM, Saturday, October 24, 2015 at St. John’s Lutheran Church, 8250 202nd St. W., Lakeville, MN. Visitation 5-8 PM Friday, October 23 at White Funeral Home, 20134 Kenwood Tr. (Co. Rd. 50), also 1 hour prior to service. Interment, Lakeville Grove Cemetery, Lakeville, MN.