Susan G. Casper

Susan G. Casper, age 29 and a few, passed away Sunday February 26, 2012 at St. Elizabeth's Hospital in Appleton, Wisconsin. She is survived by her mother Helen; her son Nicholas “Nick”; her brother and three sisters Timothy “Tim”, Virginia “Ginny”, Lynne, and Sarah; and her nieces and nephews Katelyn “Katey”, Christiana “Ana”, Keegan “Bob”, Jack “Little Dood”, Jessie “The Duck”; and her naughty black dog Huckleberry. Susan was born March 15th, 1959 in Detroit, Michigan, daughter of James B. and M. Helen Casper.

Beginning as a swing shift forklift operator for Consolidated Papers in Stevens Point, she graduated high school and continued on to receive her BS in English from University of Wisconsin – Stevens Point and a Master of Fine Arts in English from University of Wisconsin – Milwaukee. An avid educator of anyone willing or unwilling to learn, she rose through the ranks of Kaukauna High School as instructor, at-risk student instructor, and at-risk program director. She then transitioned to positions inside of the Wisconsin Department of Corrections where she was an instructor, site coordinator, member of the Incarcerated Individuals Program (IIP) Steering Committee, and eventually served as the Vocational Education Coordinator across all IIP sites. In addition to the positive impact on many Wisconsin minds across all demographics, she is currently the only female instructor in the country to assist an inmate to achieve their Associate's Degree.

She is published in several capacities including staff writer and critic for “Night Sights and Sounds of Wisconsin” during the grunge rock era of the early 90s, and author of her collected poetry works, Morphine or I'll Jump. She enjoyed gardening, camping, and travelling, especially to New Orleans, her favorite haunt.

Her passion, compassion, independence, and artistic flair will be deeply missed.

A memorial service will be held at 1:00 PM on Saturday, March 3, 2012 at Wichmann Funeral Home in Appleton. Friends may call at the funeral home on Saturday morning from 10:00 AM until the time of the service. Gov. Scott Walker, though invited, is not likely to attend.

Memorials in Sue's memory may be made to

WISCONSIN PUBLIC RADIO
821 University Avenue
Madison, Wisconsin 53706

or www.wpr.org (use the donation tab)

or 800-383-9772

Wichmann Funeral Home
537 N. Superior Street
Appleton, WI 54911
920-739-1231