i just learned of susan's passing while watching brian and lisa anderson's weekly pen video, and i interrupt my watching to write and extend my sincere condolences to her family and friends... i met susan at the first pen show i attended here in columbus, ohio in 2014... i remember feeling overwhelmed by the sheer magnitude of the pen show, but i was able to get over that when susan introduced herself to me at her booth... of course, my first impression of her was that both of her hands were completely stained by ink!... but i got over that quickly... she was like your best teacher on the first day in a class that is your favorite subject in school... when i explained what i was looking for (a flex pen), she shared her knowledge in a manner that was at once practical and memorable... the first thing she did was she asked to see how i wrote... and then she took it from there... i started learning the importance of things that i had not known previously as she spent more than a little time and shared so much of her knowledge... one could not help but come away from that encounter with an impression of her great spirit, her outgoing personality, her intelligence, her kindness... i did not know susan wirth well, but i know this: there are some people in this world who are described as larger than life, and susan is one such person...

John Blackburn

Acquaintance