Susan Ann Norris Ossian, age 76, passed away at 7:38 a.m. from kidney and liver disease at the Good Samaritan Society in Red Oak, Iowa. Susan was born on July 19, 1942, in Long Prairie, Minnesota, as the fifth of six children. She graduated from Long Prairie High School in 1960 and immediately traveled by herself via ship to France and spent a year overseas with her sister Nell whose husband Bill was stationed in the military. Susan cared for their two young sons and traveled through parts of Europe during this year.

Susan then attended Iowa State College in the fall of 1961 and immediately met and dated Roger Ossian, who remarkably saw her name in the student directory and called her for a date. The couple would be married on June 10, 1962, at the Presbyterian Church in Ames, Iowa, creating a marriage that would last almost 57 years. Susan and Roger began a family with three children to follow: Lisa in December 1962, Daniel in September 1964, and Roger Jr. in March 1967. Susan enjoyed being a dedicated mother and made a home for her family in Dubuque, and then Ames when Roger returned to ISU. After his graduation, their family lived in Winterset, Madrid, Sheldahl, Polk City, and Stanton, Iowa, and later built their retirement home in Safford, Arizona.

Susan loved to help people, and her jobs included assisting clients and customers at the pharmacy in Polk City, the Farm Bureau insurance office in Red Oak, the recorder's office in the Montgomery Court House, and as a teller at the Great Western Bank in Stanton. She joined the Business and Professional Woman's group (BPW) in Red Oak and sang in the Mamrelund Lutheran Church choir. Susan enjoyed reading and always had several library books beside her chair as well as knitting children's and grandchildren's projects, hosting Stanton parties, and traveling in her husband's truck camper throughout the Western States and Alaska. She had a talent for the dramatic story with her own embellishments and a quick wit, never holding back her many opinions. But throughout, Susan had her loving, infectious laughter and unique sense of humor, even joking with the nurses during her final days. Her last word said aloud was "Roger," and she died holding her husband's hand.

Susan is survived by her husband, Roger Alan Ossian, along with their three children and spouses: Lisa Payne Ossian (Vince Payne), Daniel Ossian (Angela), and Roger Ossian, Jr. (Carol). She loved seven grandchildren: Bailey Magneson (Dayne), Macy Hagen (Brian), Lauren Ossian, Nellie Higginbottom, Meredith Ossian, Brita Ossian, and Eric Ossian. Her two great grandchildren are Delainey Magneson (age 5) and Everett Hagen. (age 3 months). She has three surviving siblings—Paul Norris, Mary Rosenow, and Jeanie Trigg. Her parents Ned and Grace Norris along with her sister Nell and brother Ed preceded her in death.

A Celebration of Life will be held at the Mamrelund Lutheran Church in Stanton, Iowa, at 2:30 p.m., Sunday, May 26 ^th . Memorials may be directed to the Stanton Public Library. If you wish, donated potted flowers will be planted in a garden for Susan's memory.