Susan Graves

Susan Finkbine Graves of Los Alamos passed away peacefully at her home Wednesday March 2,  2016 at the age of 92. She died gracefully and quietly in the company of her husband and sons.
Known as Sue to her family and friends, she led a long and full life. Born in Storm Lake, Iowa, in 1923, Sue was the eldest daughter of Frank Mills Finkbine and Mae Reents Finkbine. Her earliest years were spent in Storm Lake along with her sister, Sally, and she was widely known in that town. As a young woman she enjoyed roller- and ice- skating on the lake in winters, and she made it look so easy that friends often described her as “elegant.” While still a child she was featured in the local paper with a snow sculpture of a dog that she had crafted one winter. In summers she and her family traveled to Minnesota frequently to a family cabin on Spirit Lake. Sue was a talented piano player and played at assemblies and performances at Storm Lake High School and at State music competitions. She continued to play the piano for pleasure for many years.
After a year at Grinnell College in Iowa, she transferred to Iowa State University in Ames, where she earned a degree as a dietitian. During summers between regular semesters of college she attended Buena Vista College in Storm Lake. She began her career in dietetics at a hospital in Cincinnati, Ohio as an intern for one year and she was asked to stay on as an employee. After a few years working there, she accepted a position in Des Moines, managing the food service for an entire hospital. This led to another job back at Grinnell College, where she ran the food service operation for the men’s dormitories. An advertisement in the newspaper took her to Bloomington, Indiana, where she was in charge of the food service for the A section of the Men’s and graduate dormitory system. There she met her husband, Glen A Graves, of Bloomington, a graduate Physics student at the time. They married in February of 1951 in Chicago, Illinois, and moved in 1952 to Los Alamos, New Mexico, where Glen took a position with the Scientific Laboratory in the Critical Assemblies Group.
Their first child, Frank Charles Graves, was born in 1953. Two years later, John Douglas Graves would join the family and in 1961 son Thomas Alan Graves was born. The house on Barranca Mesa where Sue spent the largest part of her life was also built that year.
Her primary role having re-oriented toward her growing family, Sue took care of the household. In 1969 the entire family moved to Vienna, Austria when Glen took a position with the International Atomic Energy Agency. There, she enjoyed learning German and living in a new culture, even trying downhill skiing. Sue was fortunate to be able to travel throughout much of Europe during the family’s time in Austria, and her previous musical training reinforced her enjoyment of the many fine cultural offerings there.
Sue and family returned from Vienna to Los Alamos in 1970, and then she and her husband and sons moved in 1973 to Northern Virginia. There, she became active in the local Garden Club, an interest that she carried all her remaining years. She worked for a time as a docent at Sully Plantation in Virginia, and during this period she became interested in arts and crafts. She honed her skills as a painter, created lovely embroidery and needlepoint artworks, and other fine pieces. In later years she would take up quilting as well, producing many beautiful works for her family. She was a member of the Los Alamos Quilting Guild.
In 1978 the family returned to New Mexico, and Sue’s involvement with Garden Clubs became much more serious. Five times she was elected President of the Los Alamos Garden Club, and also went on to be President of the New Mexico Garden Clubs and served on the Board of Directors of the National Garden Club. She earned the title of Master Gardener, and her lovely arrangements frequently won prizes in competitions.
Leading up to and after Glen’s retirement from the Lab, Sue and her family travelled widely, to such far-flung places as China, Egypt, South- and Central America, Australia and New Zealand, Africa, and the U.K. and Europe. Her love of travel and books made her a conversationalist and an interesting person to be around. Sue had a sense of adventure and almost never turned down a chance to see or experience something new. She also had a sharp sense of humor, but had the humility and grace to let it never offend.
In the last several years of her life, Sue managed well with Parkinson’s disease as it progressed and eventually limited her mobility. She maintained a positive disposition throughout and worked very hard with therapy and daily exercises to cope as well as possible. Even in her last weeks before passing she continued this effort diligently and with success.
Above all, Sue Graves was kind, patient, and gentle to a fault. All her life she strived to be a proper and decent person, and never sought to be the center of attention. She had an artistic eye and the talent to match, and while able she was constantly active and creative. She will be missed.
She is survived by her husband, Glen Graves of Los Alamos, NM, sons, Frank Graves and his family of Lincoln, Massachusetts; Thomas Graves and family of Burtonsville, Maryland; John Graves of Singapore. Also surviving is sister, Sally Finkbine Baker and her family of Eugene, Oregon.
Public viewing will begin Wednesday, March 9, 2016 at 9:30a.m. at the United Church in Los Alamos with funeral to follow at 11:00 a.m. Burial will be at the Guaje Pines Cemetery in Los Alamos. The family asks that, in lieu of flowers, donations be made either to the Los Alamos Garden Club or the National Parkinson Foundation. The family would also like to thank the many dedicated caregivers who have worked with us in recent years, as well as the Los Alamos Visiting Nurses and their Hospice program. The family of Susan Graves has entrusted the care of their beloved one to the DeVargas Funeral Home and Crematory of the Española Valley.

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