Friends and family gathered together on Saturday morning in Ogden, Utah, for the funeral services of Suzanne Nicholson, who was a secretary in the geosciences department at Weber State University.

Throughout the funeral service, speakers recalled Nicholson as a loving, caring friend, mother and employee. Nicholson’s family members shared stories which highlighted her compassion and love, many of these stories focused on the love she had for her family.

Nicholson had three children and seven grandchildren. A prominent theme at her funeral was the love she had for her children and grandchildren. The importance she placed on always being there for her family was often noted. Her family said she never missed a ball game, play, or other important event in her children and grandchildren’s lives.

Her husband, Dewey Nicholson, said one of the best things about her was the love she had for life.

“Suzi had a zest for life and loved every moment,” Dewey said. “She could find fun in the simplest of things.”

Nicholson passed away while on vacation with her grandson in New York City, which was her favorite vacation destination. She was involved in a traffic accident and died protecting her grandson when the taxi they were in slid out of control.

Another important topic during the funeral was the relationship she formed with those around her at work.

Dewey said his wife loved working at WSU more than any other job she had held. He said she loved the students she worked with and tried to be a mother to them.

Daniel McPeck, a longtime friend of the Nicholsons and former neighbor, said Nicholson was a wonderful person and friend, and the best neighbor he could have asked for.

“Suzi and Dewey moved into their home the same day my late wife Sue and I moved in next door to them back in 1976,” McPeck said. “We remained neighbors until Sue passed in 2007, and I remarried and moved away in 2010. Suzi and Dewey were always the best kind of neighbors one can have.”

McPeck said that throughout the time he was a neighbor to the Nicholsons, they shared many good memories, and that the world will not be the same now.

“Sue and Suzi carpooled our children to school, walked together, helped each other out when needed, shared their garden, good neighbor things,” McPeck said. “Suzi and Dewey were a great couple, parents, grandparents, and the world will be a lesser place for Suzi’s loss.”

Many members of the WSU community were present at the funeral service and the viewing held the night before. Nicholson’s memory will live on at WSU in the form of the Suzi Nicholson Memorial Scholarship Fund. The Nicholson family asked friends to make donations to the scholarship fund instead of buying flowers. The scholarship will be awarded yearly to an outstanding student in the geosciences department.

Following the funeral, the family held a small gathering in New Haven, Utah. Nicholson was buried in New Harmony, Utah.