Suzanne
Marie Rinehart, 55, died at her home in Caldwell on December 28, 2016, after
fighting pancreatic cancer.
A
memorial service and celebration of Suzanne’s life will be held at 2:00pm on
Saturday, December 31, at Alden-Waggoner Funeral Chapel, 5400 West Fairview
Avenue, Boise, ID. The family will greet friends from 1:00-2:00 p.m. prior to
the service.
Suzanne
was born in Carroll, Iowa, on November 29, 1961, to John and Adeline Riedesel
of Glidden. She was the youngest of five children. She grew up on a
farm and attended Glidden-Ralston Schools, graduating high school in 1980. She
then attended the University of Northern Iowa for two years before enrolling in
the National Student Exchange Program and attending and graduating in 1984 from
the University of Idaho with a Bachelor of Arts in education and a minor in
German. While at Idaho, she met the love of her life, Mike Rinehart. They
were married on August 18, 1984, in Mike’s hometown of McCall. They have
resided in the Boise area since then. They are the parents of Sean Rinehart, who
is in his final year at the University of Minnesota Law School.
Soon
after Suzanne graduated from college, she took what was to be a short-term job
working at a McDonald’s store in Boise. She quickly rose through the ranks from
a crew member, to store manager, to area supervisor, and then was promoted to
director of human resources with Darmody Enterprises. The Darmody family
operates the McDonald’s stores in the Treasure Valley. She was one of the small
leadership team at Darmody and worked diligently toward the success of the
business. She loved her work, and colleagues loved her.
In
her pastime, Suzanne was a huge Green Bay Packers fan. She and her husband
seldom missed a Packers game on television. They attended games at Lambeau
Field six times, including a trip in November that was made possible by the
Darmody family. Suzanne, her husband, her son, and her son's fiancée were all
there together and it's a memory they will always treasure.
Suzanne
and Mike also loved The Eagles, REO Speedwagon, and Journey, attending many
concerts over the years. One of Suzanne’s favorite memories in recent
years was hosting an annual Riedesel family retreat in Sun Valley in the
summers of 2014 and 2015.
Suzanne was diagnosed in June 2016
with Stage IV pancreatic cancer. She underwent intense chemotherapy at Mountain
States Tumor Institute in Nampa and also consulted with an oncology team at
Mayo Clinic in Rochester, Minnesota. Despite this, she continued working until
early December. Her hope was that, eventually, a clinical trial might help her
live. However, she was told at Mayo earlier this month that chemo had failed
and no other treatment could help her. The family would like to thank St Luke's
Hospice for their wonderful care in Suzanne's final weeks of life.
Suzanne is survived by her husband Mike of Caldwell; son Sean (fiancée Rachael
Ashley) of Minneapolis; brothers Warren (Mary) Riedesel of Des Moines, Iowa,
and Cal Riedesel of Sac City, Iowa; sister Barb Iverson of Minneapolis; sister-
and brother-in-law Dawn and Dave Elam of Nampa; sister-in-law Patience Riedesel
of Marshalltown, Iowa; dear cousin Jim Meisheid of Walker, Iowa, plus many
other cousins; nine nieces and nephews; college friends; and Green Bay Packers
fans/friends. She was preceded in death by her parents; brother Miles Riedesel;
brother-in-law Jim Iverson; and her in-laws George and Shirley Rinehart of
Emmett and Bill and Thelma Stewart of Richland, Oregon.
Interment will take place at a later time at Cloverdale Cemetery in Boise. In
lieu of flowers, the family requests that tax-deductible memorials be directed
to Pancreatic Cancer Action Network, the nation’s leading pancreatic cancer
organization. Memorial gifts may be given electronically by going to
www.pancan.org/donate
.