Susan (“Susie”) Ann Konya Emery gained her angel wings (as she called them) on February 11, 2025, after a year and a half battle with Stage IV lung/breast cancer. Susie was listening to her favorite performances of her granddaughter singing Frozen’s “Let it Go” followed by Dear Evan Hanson’s “Requiem” and passed peacefully in the comfort of her daughter’s hands with her son and husband gathered at her bedside. She wanted to hear her pride and joy sing one last time before she transitioned.

Susie’s legacy began in Quakertown, PA, on August 8, 1950. Susie was the 2nd oldest of five children, Rosie, Mary, Joey, and Kalman, and was born from the late Mary Surmon Konya and Kalman Konya, Sr. Susie’s nickname growing up was “Fuzzy” because she was a bit absent-minded, which Susie embraced. Rather than be embarrassed, Susie laughed whenever she realized she had a fuzzy moment. Like the time when she got home from work, locked-up her car, but totally forgot to turn the engine off. The neighbor had to tell her siblings that Susie had left her car on. Whoops!

Out of the sisters, Rosie was the quiet one, Mary was ‘old for her years,’ but Susie was known to be an absolute spitfire. When all 3 worked together at the Hunterdon County National Bank, Susie was known for not taking gruff from anyone–even her bosses. Susie was funny. One time Susie’s dad had put grass seed in her yard and told her she would have to water it. Her response? “Dad, I don’t have time. Can you just take it out?” As the years went on, Susie, Rosie, Mary, and Joey would have the most belly-laughing lunches regularly at Teaberry’s in Flemington.

Susie met her future husband, Jerry Emery, at the Flemington Fair in Flemington in the early 1980s. They were both working booths across the way from each other. Seeing Susie with knee high white boots and a mini-skirt, Jerry went on to ask Susie out multiple times over the next few days. But she turned him down every single time. A few weeks later, Susie showed up at Jerry’s auto body shop, and said, “Alright, you can take me out now.” Jerry, shocked, replied, “What changed?” Susie responded, “I dumped my boyfriend,” with a big smile on her face. After getting married on July 17, 1983, they would share the rest of their years together. Even though Jerry “drove her crazy,” she loved him until her last breath.

As Susie always said, her true calling in life was to be a mother, which she joyfully fulfilled with the birth of her son, Jason Michael on December 2, 1983. Eighteen months later, Susie thought she was delivering another boy due to the baby’s size and rambunctious behavior in her tummy. When it turned out to be a girl, Susie, shocked, proclaimed, “it’s a…boy…oh, it’s a Bubbas,” and so became her daughter’s nickname, “Katie Bubbas.” Susie was the idyllic mom and cherished her children. Whether it was Jason’s soccer or Katie’s dance lessons, Susie was always there, supporting her kids in all their passions. Susie was proud of both of her children’s progression into adulthood. Jason played saxophone, was a champion pole vaulter, and found a career as an esteemed mechanic. Katie played piano, was an avid dancer, ran track and played softball, earned her master’s degree, sang, and played keys in multiple bands (which Susie loved to attend) and found professional success in the business world.

Susie had her own professional successes working in various positions throughout her life. With a knack for numbers, Susie worked for the Eaton Corporation and served as an Accounts Payable Administrator for 10 years. In her heart of hearts, Susie was a true homemaker who had a true calling for decorating and organizing.

Susie was also a social butterfly if there ever was one. She met what would be her people on a Marching Band trip to England for Jason when he was a Freshman in high school. Always a strait-laced woman, you can imagine her shock when her assigned roommate, Carol, told Susie she had brought “all the drugs.” Susie, thinking, “What have I gotten myself into?!?” laughed hysterically when Carol held up 2 large baggies full of antibiotics, Mucinex–all the drugs that any pharmacist would bring to an overseas trip with a hundred high schoolers. After that, Susie was officially in the Band Parents clique, and they would all stay lifelong best friends. Over the years, the Band Parents vacationed together, went on cruises, threw more Band Parent parties than one could count, and were always there for all of life’s big moments like weddings, showers, and even funerals.

Speaking of parties, Susie always knew how to throw the best ones. For years, Susie hosted her famous Christmas Party that featured her gourmet cooking, incredible hospitality, and all-night drinking and laughing. For Susie, not a typical drinker, it only took a glass of wine, and she was happy-go-lucky for the night. The Christmas season was always Susie’s favorite, and she started decorating the first Sunday of December. Ever the entertainer and incredible chef, Susie would craft elaborate Thanksgiving and Christmas menus with 10+ delectable dishes. Broccoli cheese casserole, shrimp de jonghe, and Susie’s mom’s recipe of Tollhouse Chocolate Chip Cookies were always fan favorites. Susie told her sister Mary that her first act of business when she went to heaven was to cook for Jesus. Mary responded, “Well, you know Jesus liked fish.” And Susie laughed and laughed.

When Katie was taking dancing lessons, Susie met another lifelong best friend, Vida, who encouraged her to take Vida’s Adult Tap classes. So began Susie’s journey as a Dancing Diva performer. Susie’s basement is filled with First Place awards for tap dance numbers like These Boots Were Made for Walking, Man I Feel Like a Woman, Candy Man, Diamonds are a Girl’s Best Friend, and Steam Heat. Once, dressed in a sparkly, tight tap-dancing outfit for a dance competition, the Dancing Divas were propositioned at Atlantic City. Susie and her daughter Katie danced together in the Dancing Divas for 8 years, carpooling weekly for tap practice.

The Stanton Reformed Church served as the beacon of Susie’s Christian faith. Susie thrived in the church choir, where she first met 20-something accompanist, Ilya. Seeing Ilya as a fish out of his native Russian waters, Susie took him under her wing, calling him her adopted son. Susie also took piano lessons from Ilya, something that she kept up for years. Over the next 20 years, Ilya would stay with Susie and Jerry, where Susie loved to prepare chef-quality meals for him.

Nothing brought Susie more joy than when her first grandchild, Sofia, came to this world on November 19, 2009. A proud Souska (as the kids called her), Susie loved to play kitchen with Sofi, to take her to dance lessons, and spend as much time as possible watching her grow up. Susie was also a true softball grandma, going to as many of Sofi’s softball games and tournaments as possible. Susie was absolutely enamored with her second grandchild Lincoln, who was born in October of 2014. She also babysat her “Linky” weekly and loved to do puzzles with him and watch him pitch and play baseball. She was sure Linky would be a lawyer, fighting injustices. Susie was ecstatic when her third and last grandchild, Myles, came along in January of 2017. She babysat Myles and Linky together weekly, and always thought of her Myles as being a genius. Susie loved watching Myles play soccer and couldn’t wait until he was the “first doctor in the family.” Susie’s grandchildren were truly her life, and she loved them unconditionally.

Susie was able to travel the world and even saw the Nutcracker Ballet in Russia. Most recently, she went on a trip to Orlando with her daughter’s family, spending 5 days riding all the slow rides at Disney World and Universal parks. No roller coasters for Susie! Susie loved the theater and absolutely loved to see Katie, and then Sofi, perform on stage. One of Susie’s favorite pastimes was to go to the city to see a Broadway show. Susie was thrilled to watch Frozen on Broadway with Sofi. And Susie was infinitely proud to watch Sofi play the part of Elsa, and made sure to attend every single performance. It was fitting that Susie felt it was time to go while listening to Sofi singing “Let it Go” from one of those performances.

Susie immensely loved her siblings, husband, son and daughter, grandchildren, friends, cats, and her daughter’s dogs. She will be remembered for her spitball humor, for being fuzzy, generosity, beautiful smile, intellect, party hostess with the mostess, and dancing ability.

Susie is predeceased by her mother, Mary Surman Konya, and father, Kalman Konya, Sr. along with her cats Mushy, Kibbles, and Oreo.

Susie leaves behind many, many loved ones and friends including husband, Jerry Emery; children, son, Jason Emery and partner, Lisa, daughter, Katie Emery and husband, Dan Reed; grandchildren, Sofia, Lincoln, and Myles; siblings, Rosie Turner and husband, Jim Turner, Mary McManimon and husband, Jim McManimon, Joey Konya and partner, Donna Tabor, Kalmon Konya Jr.; her beloved cats, Duchess, Natasha, and George; her daughter’s dogs, Falkor, Eleven, and Gizmo; along with many nieces, nephews, and best friends.

Susie will lie in repose on Saturday, February 22, 2025, from 2:30 p.m. – 4:00 p.m., at Stanton Reformed Church, 1 Stanton Mountain Road, Stanton, NJ 08885, under the care and direction of Wright & Ford Family Funeral Home and Cremation Services, 38 State Highway 31, Flemington, NJ.

A Life Celebration service with special music that guided Susie’s journey will be immediately follow the visitation beginning at 4:00 p.m. at church and to which all are welcome.

Please follow the instructions of the Wright & Ford Care Team Family Ambassadors upon arrival at church.

For those unable to attend on Saturday, the services will be recorded and live-streamed beginning at 4:00 p.m. that day.

Interment will be private.

You are encouraged to visit Susie’s permanent life celebration site at www.wrightfamily.com to light a candle of hope, leave messages of condolence, share words of comfort and recollection, and post photographs of her life.

It was Susie’s wish that in lieu of flowers, anyone who wishes to honor her to please do so by making a donation to the Stanton Reformed Church in her honor and memory via mail t0 1 Stanton Mountain Road, Stanton, NJ 08885 or online by clicking HERE or to Susie Ann’s Stage for Youth (SASY Inc), which is a new registered 501(c)(3) non-profit youth theater organization that honors Susie’s love of the theater arts. Checks can be made to Susie Ann’s Stage for Youth Inc., and sent to 10 Dartmouth Road, Annandale NJ 08801.

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Wright & Ford, your local, family owned & operated “Life Celebration Home”

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