Susan Laverne Knight

Susan LaVerne Knight of Eskridge, Kansas died on Thursday, November 23, 2023, at her home.  She was 73.

Suzi was born on May 17, 1950, in Washington, Missouri, and was adopted in infancy by William E. and Eileen D. Ready Bullington.  She married Kenneth W. Knight on September 1, 1968, in Eskridge.  He survives at home.  She was preceded in death by her parents William and Eileen Bullington.

Other survivors include her children, Casey Knight and Chad (Cindy) Knight of Eskridge; daughters, Sundi (Brad) Gray of Columbia, Missouri, and Skye Knight of Newberry, South Carolina and grandchildren Jordan, Cheyanne, Jake, and Canon (Sarah) Knight, Savannah (Dylan) Mawhirter, William, Myriah, Ken (Andrea), and Christian (Carrie) Araiza, and Hailey and Carson Hallman. Great-grandchildren include Sophia, Isaiah, Josiah, Thalia, Sawyer, Blair, Dawson, Aeris, Xavier, Cheyenne, Bitsy, Lenore, Addalynn, Hannah, Harper, Ethan, Maddox, Cass, Toby, Kaisynn, Aristynn, Wyatt, Dustin, Axsynn, Za’Brie, Za’Ryah, Monty, and a great granddaughter due in February 2024, as well as her nieces Tina (Shawn) Kilian and Cindy Musick. Suzi is also survived by her beloved dog, Callie.

During her life, she worked as a homemaker, a librarian, a typist for the office of vital statistics, and she received a degree in horticulture from Clemson University, South Carolina.  Suzi was a self-taught master oil and acrylic artist.  There was nothing that she would not paint on and nothing that she could not paint, but landscapes, flowers, birds, and butterflies were her favorite subjects.  A few years ago, she underwent cataract surgery and cried the next day at the amazement of all the colors she had missed out on while waiting for her surgery.  Suzi was most happy at home with her husband Kenny and going out to antique stores and flea markets or being with him out in nature collecting feathers to paint on or dragging rocks home to line her flower gardens.  Whenever they were in nature, and she called out “oh Kenny…” he knew he was getting ready to haul home something!  When she became too weak to paint and be in nature, she turned back to her love of books.  She was a voracious reader.  She loved the way a book felt in her hands, the gentle roughness of the pages, and even the smell of the book.  When electronic books came out, she scoffed and wondered who on earth would want an electronic book.  Suzi loved all these things but what she loved most was Kenny, her husband of 55 years, her children and grandchildren and of course, Callie.

Funeral services will be at 2:00 p.m., Tuesday, November 28, 2023, at the Eskridge Southern Baptist Church in Eskridge with burial following at the Eskridge Cemetery.  Visitation will take place at the church from 1:00 p.m. until service time.  Memorial contributions to the Eskridge Public Library can be sent in care of Roberts-Blue-Barnett Funeral Home, P.O. Box 175, Emporia, Kansas 66801.