Susan Harley Cardwell
Susan Harley Cardwell was born on August 7, 1946, in Frederick, Maryland. Growing up, her favorite pastimes included playing with her pet monkey (you read that correctly), spending time with her Grandfather, Theodore (“Teddy” or “Papa”) Semler, the Executive Chef at the Francis Scott Key Hotel, especially when the kitchen staff looked after (i.e. provided unlimited amounts of ice cream to) her and her younger brother, Wade (Delores) Harley, and taking trips to New York with Papa’s wife, Alma, who worked as a buyer for a ladies clothing store.
Susan, her parents, Marion C. (“Bud”) and Ada (“Rudy”) Cole, Wade, and stepbrother, Bill Cole, left Maryland for Crossville, Tennessee, in 1960, a move she pretended to never forgive. Despite a bit of culture shock, Susan flourished on the Plateau, first at Homestead High School and then at Cumberland County High, maintaining a straight A GPA and cheerleading for the Jets.
Richard Cardwell, a local farm boy who drove a sweet 1955 Chevy, was smitten by Susan the second she stepped foot in Cumberland County High School in 1963. After months (a lot of months and a lot of asks), she agreed to a date with Richard. To the surprise of many (and Richard’s good fortune), this date led to a lifetime of dates and nearly 59 year marriage.
Susan attended Fort Sanders School of Nursing in Knoxville following her graduation from high school in 1964. She and Richard married on December 29, 1965, following his enlistment in the Air Force.
As Richard went through basic training and subsequent assignments, Susan completed her degree and became a Registered Nurse in 1967. Armed with that degree, she reunited with Richard in Honolulu, Hawaii, where he was stationed. The “Hawaii Years” were among the young couple’s favorites, especially the year Wade graduated from high school and crashed on their couch for an entire summer (and for what Wade’s and Susan’s parents deemed to be an inappropriate amount of the fall).
Susan found work as an ER nurse at Kaiser Permanente shortly after arriving in Hawaii, where a fellow ER nurse, whose brother worked as Don Ho’s manager, befriended her. This friendship led to Susan and Richard spending many nights at the Don Ho show wondering just how many tiny bubbles were in the wine.
Honolulu was expensive, and neither Susan nor Richard made much money. To supplement their income, Susan began wagering with the hospital’s ER doctors on the diagnoses ultimately assigned to their patients. In addition to helping with the bills, Susan’s superior diagnostic skills contributed to her and Richard’s purchase of a Volkswagen Karmann Ghia convertible, which she dubbed Gertie the Ghia, to explore the island.
Susan and Richard left Hawaii in 1969 and returned to Knoxville, where she worked at Fort Sanders Hospital and he attended the University of Tennessee. Their first child, Chris (Mary Taylor Gallagher) Cardwell, quickly followed in May of 1972. While still getting used to that knucklehead, and following a move to Chattanooga, a second knucklehead, Craig (Kendra) Cardwell, joined the family in March of 1974.
With two sons and a husband in tow, Susan moved to Wilson County in 1977, first to Mt. Juliet and then, in 1981, to Cedar Cove Farm, outside of Gladeville, where she lived the rest of her life.
The 45 years Susan lived on Cedar Cove Farm were full of love, fun, surprise, and all-around swell times. In addition to developing her passions for interior design, and collecting folk art and antique furniture, she spent the first several years on the Farm obtaining a second college degree in Adolescent Psychology from MTSU, attending Chris’ and Craig’s football, basketball, and baseball games (as well as Craig’s piano recitals), driving her sons and their friends to all kinds of events (many at the Mt. Juliet Skate Inn), arranging family tailgates at UT football games, and visiting Papa in Frederick at Thanksgiving.
Susan was the ultimate boy mom and always welcomed her sons’ friends when they wanted to be fed, swim in their “public” pool, or watch wrestling on Saturday mornings. But they were out of high school by 1992, and Susan found herself with too much free time on her hands. She filled this time by volunteering, first at the Crisis Intervention Center and then at Wilson County CASA where she, despite not being a lawyer, frequently (and skillfully) advocated for “her kids” in court. Despite excelling in these roles and changing many lives for the better, she missed the days of having her entire family together. To fill this void, she, Richard, Wade, and Delores began hosting an annual vacation to the Isle of Palms for their families (including Susan’s parents, nephew, Wil, and niece, Kate), a tradition that lasted over 20 years and was always full of laughs, exceptional food, and great times.
Susan retired from volunteering with CASA about the time Craig and Kendra gave her a wonderful gift, a granddaughter named Caroline, who quickly became (and remained) Susan’s “Mini-Me.” An equally-loved grandson named Zachary came two years later, and the annual family vacation to the Isle of Palms and holiday gatherings were never the same. Susan loved spending time with her grandchildren, and attended all their many functions just as she did for her sons. She developed special relationships with Caroline and Zach, and never ceased talking about how proud she was of them.
Susan passed peacefully at the Farm on September 19, 2024. She spent that and the prior days surrounded by Richard, Chris, Craig, Kendra, Mary Taylor, Caroline, Zachary, Wade, and Delores. During her final days, she frequently expressed her love and admiration for Richard, as well as the joy she felt by knowing her sons and daughters-in-law (who she treated like her own) were happy and her grandchildren were thriving. Susan loved her family immeasurably and they are profoundly grateful for her life.
Susan’s family will host a celebration of her life on Saturday, October 5, 2024, at 1:00 P.M. at Providence Church in Mt. Juliet. They will enjoy meeting with friends and family between 11:00 and 1:00. A private burial service will take place the next day.
In lieu of flowers, Susan’s family requests donations to Wilson County CASA or Wilson County Habitat for Humanity.
LIGON & BOBO FUNERAL HOME of Lebanon (615) 444-2142 www.ligonbobo.com
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