Musician, Friend, Mother

Susan Miller Cornwall passed away on October 31, 2022, at the age of 79.

She leaves Nick Pappas, her husband of 42 years; their daughter, Elizabeth Amy Pappas Cornwall; her stepsons, Benjamin Pappas and Matthew Papakipos; her brother, Richard Cornwall; and her four grandchildren. Sue resided in Concord, Massachusetts for over 45 years, the last two years of which she was delighted to share a home with Nick, Ben, her daughter-in-law, Esther Greenburg, and granddaughter Tova.

Sue loved to talk about her early years in the wintry Upper Peninsula of Michigan where she learned to ski. When the family moved to California, she took up her father’s love of tennis and played on her college team. In later life, she became an avid runner, amassing a large collection of T-shirts from 10K road races until her health curtailed her physical activity.

Sue received a Bachelor’s degree from Pomona College, a Master’s Degree from Stanford, and furthered her musical development at New England Conservatory. She studied math because she was pretty good at it and it was a supposedly practical major, and the one that would require the fewest credits, thus allowing her to take many music classes, as music was, and remained, her true passion. Her math degree led her to work in the computer industry and later as a management consultant. Sue had a beautiful light soprano voice and performed with the Cantata Singers in the 1970’s, and thereafter in many small ensembles. She organized and led a church group that brought music to people who were ill, the By Your Side Singers. In recent years, she embraced Early Music and playing the harpsichord, which she found quite preferable to the piano. She was a beloved chamber music host to the early music community.

Family was the cornerstone of her life. She understood the importance of “making family,” by which she meant that one had to provide the setting, the support, the activities, and the values that would constitute an environment for everyone to connect and develop.

As Sue’s medical problems curtailed her activity in recent years, her service dog, Bizzi was always with her. In addition to his services, (warning her when she must stop or curtail an activity), he provided a constant, loving presence that nurtured her.

There will be a Memorial Service, followed by a reception, at First Parish Church of Lincoln, MA, at 11:00 a.m., Saturday, November 12, 2022.