Doris Jean Steussy
December 2, 2008
By Administrator
Doris Jean Steussy
Doris Jean Steussy, née Kennedy, passed away Nov. 19, 2008. She was born March 3, 1917, in Wauwatosa, Wis. She was the only child of William A. and Rose Bayliss Kennedy. The Kennedys were florists and at the time owned the largest greenhouses east of the Mississippi. It was here that Doris developed her artistic sensibilities and design sense that would be her signature for life.
Doris attended St. Jude’s, Holy Names Academy and Mount Mary College in Milwaukee. Though never Catholic, the private schools nurtured her as she struggled with undiagnosed dyslexia. She was creative and entrepreneurial. Doris raised a great deal of money for Catholic schools by organizing and staging galas.
She married her first love, Norman B. Steussy. The couple raised their children, Jolly Suzanne Baker, Bonnie V. Steussy and Norman (Buzz) Steussy in Olympia. Later, they had homes in Tacoma, Palm Springs and Issaquah.
The couple had moved west when Norman was stationed at Fort Lewis. Doris was smitten by the natural beauty of Washington state. Nothing brought her more pleasure than the evergreens, mosses and lichens of the Northwest forests. She gave this enthusiasm to her children.
She started a business called Sprigs and Twigs that sold huckleberry, salal and Scotch broom to the Eastern floral markets. Her designs became icons of the Pacific Northwest and were given by several local corporations to executive clients. For 15 years, she designed the evergreens featured in the December issue of Good Housekeeping magazine. Her work was featured annually at the Governor’s Mansion in Olympia.
Doris worked for 10 years with the Thurston County Sheriff’s Office and the University of Washington, counseling families in which alcoholism touched the lives of children. Children living with alcoholic parents and children with learning disabilities were two areas of great compassion for her.
She became the first human resources person at Panorama City Retirement Community when it opened in Olympia. Doris was a gifted communicator and was a proud member of the National Speakers Association. She enjoyed her volunteer work at the Tacoma Cancer Shop.
Doris had three grandchildren, Daniel R. Baker, of San Antonio, Texas, Dawn Baker Neary, of Tacoma, and Brook Steussy-Edfeldt, of Issaquah. She had six great-grandchildren and many honorary grandchildren from the Children’s Garden School in Issaquah.
She will be remembered by her family and friends for her love of life, her warmth, her wit, her tenacity, her intelligence, her love of dogs, her Rube Goldberg engineering feats, her grace and her great sense of humor. Many people who met and knew Doris felt that in her, they had met someone remarkable. We, her children, agree!
Her family wants to particularly thank Loa Ryan, Aegis of Issaquah and Providence Hospice for the tender and professional care they gave her in recent months.
An open house and celebration of Doris’ life will be held at the Kelkari Condominium clubhouse in Issaquah on Sunday, Dec. 28, from 2-4 p.m. In lieu of flowers, the family suggests a donation in her memory be made to The Children’s Garden School in Issaquah, The Washington State Learning Disability Association, Mount Rainier National Park Foundation in Seattle or the Desert Aids Project in Palm Springs.
