Susan Djorup Reilley

Susan Djorup Reilley
January 18th 1939 - May 8th 2017

Ahead of Her Time

Susan Djorup Reilley was our family's fearless explorer. Anyone she met found that out in short order when the usual small talk suddenly evaporated and you found yourself trying to answer an insightful personal question. Her love for discovering our interior terrain led her to gain a Masters of Science in Counseling from Cairn University (then known as Philadelphia College of the Bible) and embark on a later-in-life career of individual and family counseling at Family Counseling Services near her home in Belle Mead, NJ.

Her exploration often took the form of academics. After high school at Northfield School for Girls in Mt. Hermon, Massachusetts, Sue went on to achieve a Bachelor's in Home Economics from Douglass College (Rutgers University) in New Brunswick, NJ. Her thirst for knowledge didn't end with graduation. Even as she started a family, she maintained an intense curiosity about those age-old classical questions about life, particularly what makes a good one. Always exploring, driven to find best practices for everything from the culinary arts to parenting to sewing, Sue read endlessly and widely, and experimented on all of us.

Her time at Rutgers proved to be life changing in more ways than one. In those years, Sue began her eternal relationship with Jesus and got to know her best earthly friend, Andrew T. Reilley Jr. Andy and Sue were married in the summer of 1960, and her bond with the Lord Jesus, like her marriage, has only grown deeper and stronger over time.

Generous with her discoveries, she once taught a successful sewing course called Sew Very Nice. Of course we all benefited from her prowess in the kitchen. We all have delicious memories of Hearty Alphabet Soup, Cornell Chicken and homemade whole wheat bread. Even though she eschewed processed sugar for untold years, there was always ice cream in the freezer for the rest of us. Her counseling instincts helped the Reilley family navigate many a rough patch as kids grew, left home, got married, and had kids of their own.

A restless mind kept her busy. She was never bored. We think she might have inherited her energy and creativity from her mother who was just as accomplished and interesting. When she and Andy moved post-retirement to pastor Northern Valley Evangelical Free Church in New Tripoli, PA, Sue saw it as an exciting opportunity to learn about the place and the people, and to help in any way she could.

Sue loved sailing, although she didn't have much opportunity to do much seafaring beyond her college years. While somewhat reticent to travel by road or air, the pair found ways to enjoy a a few magical excursions together. There was the fabled and unforgettable family vacation to several western states in 1976, still a topic of reminiscence today. Prince Edward Island, Canada, the Holy Land and the wilds of Alaska all made it into their photo albums and store of happy memories over the years.

Just before the Reilley's 50th anniversary family reunion in Asheville, NC in 2010, Andy and Sue received unwelcome news about her health. Not one but two degenerative brain diseases were about to invade their future. She faced the diagnosis with predictable fortitude, never complaining as she slowly surrendered her formidable role as the engine of the family.

Sue wanted to understand people, not just for her own satisfaction, but so that she could help them answer the challenges they faced. Twelve-step programs were an especially important place of service for her; she sponsored many, many women in addiction recovery in an arena that hadn't yet caught on to the value of such programs-- the Church. Her home office was piled high with books and articles on the subject, side by side with other topics that caught her fancy.

Wherever she went, Bible study was non-negotiable. If there wasn't a group of women gathering to discuss the scriptures, she made sure to initiate one. She made things happen in our family, too. Mom was the one who made sure that Sears made good on their Toughskins jeans replacementguarantee every time a pair of pants suffered a hole in the knee. Holidays were driven by her planning and careful forethought.

Caring for aging parents was another task she fearlessly took on. This included adding an in-law suite to their Belle Mead home where Andy's parents found a loving home for over a decade. This was followed later by a move to Florida to watch over her own mother and father.

Even though she was born in New York City and began life in an urban setting, Sue always had a yearning to live in a small country town. It's entirely fitting, then, that the Reilleys made their way to rural Quarryville, Pennsylvania for the final chapters of their lives together. Had she not been robbed of her faculties by her neurological conditions, we are certain that Sue would have been delighted by the people and scenery of southern Lancaster County where Amish buggies and tidy farms create a singularly appealing landscape.

Sue has gone before a number of people who love her. Her husband Andrew T. Reilley, Jr. already misses her dearly. Also surviving are: Elizabeth C. Reilley her oldest daughter and her husband Steve Borick of Honolulu, Hawaii; Andrew T. Reilley III of Savannah, Georgia and his boys Thomson, Jace and Mac; Katherine Reilley Chilcote and her husband Brian of West Chester, Pennsylvania and their children Nolan, Shannon and Meagan; her sister Wendy Pacek and her husband Denny Libby of Leesburg, Florida; her nephew Gregory Pacek of Baden, Pennsylvania; and their stepfather William F. Briney of Leesburg, Florida.




As a final act of service and contribution to exploration, Sue has donated her earthly remains to the Humanities Gifts Registry, a nonprofit agency of the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania which handles the distribution of donated bodies to various state medical and dental schools for teaching purposes.

Memorial Service Information:
Saturday, May 20, 2017
Ellingsworth Auditorium, Quarryville Presbyterian Retirement Community
625 Robert Fulton Highway, Quarryville, PA
Visiting Hours: 10:00 – 10:45 AM
Memorial Service: 11:00-NOON
Followed by lunch for family and out-of-town guests

In lieu of flowers, donations can be made to The Association for Frontotemporal Degeneration.This organization has a mission to improve the quality of life of people affected by FTD and drive research to a cure.https://www.theaftd.org/get-involved/ways-to-give