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CUNNINGHAM SUSAN E., Ph.D. A light has gone out of our lives with the passing of our beloved Susan E. Cunningham, after a long illness, on September 3, 2015, at the Massachusetts General Hospital in Boston. Sue was a highly accomplished engineer, and a renowned musician, singer and songwriter. She touched the hearts of everyone she met with her wonderful music and her kind, loving spirit. She was an angel among us. Born in Pittsburgh, PA, on July 11, 1958, she was the daughter of James P. Cunningham and the late Sylvia Strand Cunningham. Sue is survived by her loving partner and companion, Frank Serio; her father and her stepmother and friend, Janice Thaxter of Westbrook, CT; her brothers, Tom and wife, Lorraine Venberg of Louisville, KY, Brian and wife, Lynn Biondi of Gladstone, NJ, Stephen and wife, Jennifer of Sewickley, PA; sister, Karen Cunningham and husband, Dan Mock of Clinton, OH; and six nieces and nephews. A 1976 graduate of Churchill Area High School in PA, Sue earned her BS in materials science and engineering from Cornell University, MS and Ph.D. in mechanical engineering from Carnegie Mellon University, and MBA in management (Sloan Fellows Program) from Massachusetts Institute of Technology. Sue specialized in jet engines and worked as an engineer, manager and business developer for several companies. At Westinghouse Electric Company in Pittsburgh, she contributed to the materials design of fuel rods for nuclear power plants. At Pratt & Whitney in Florida and Connecticut, she led development of the F119 turbine module to successful incorporation in flight testing and low rate initial production. At Florida Turbine Technologies in Jupiter, FL, she led development of the small engine program, and most recently she was director of Business Development, establishing relationships with government and commercial customers. Her vision and drive were coupled with a professional, caring personality, which successfully drew people toward her ideas. A classically trained violinist, she played in the Pittsburgh Youth Symphony Orchestra. She then turned her focus to her love of Bluegrass music, and performed and wrote songs with her brothers Tom and Steve, as The Flying Cunninghams. She was also a member of the South Ocean String Band and White Sands Panhandle Band in Florida; The Hickory Project, which toured the US, Australia, Ireland and Europe; and most recently the Rowan Cunningham Band, and the Sue Cunningham Band in PA. For 14 years she produced an annual, nationally recognized music festival in Wellsboro, PA with performances from world-class musicians, singers and songwriters. Along with Frank Serio and Verlon Thompson of Nashville, she wrote and produced an original, poignant musical production about a woman who lives through the Civil War. She was a three-time Florida Bluegrass Fiddle champion, and performed with Vassar Clements and many other famed musicians. Sue had a passion for helping others in the music world and taught many young violin students, and conducted fiddle workshops at Bluegrass venues around the country. A Memorial and Celebration of Life will be held on Saturday, September 19, 2015, at noon, at The Episcopal Church of the Good Shepherd, 400 Seabrook Road, Tequesta, FL 33469. Additional musical Celebrations of Sue's life will also be held in Wellsboro, PA, on Sunday, October 4, 2015, from noon to 6 p.m. at the Stony Fork Creek Campground; and in Pittsburgh, PA, and in Florida, with dates to be announced. In lieu of flowers, memorial contributions may be made to the Dreyfoos School of the Arts Foundation where the Sue Cunningham Memorial Music Scholarship has been established. Donations may be made online at soafi.org/donate or mailed to the School of the Arts Foundation, P.O. Box 552, West Palm Beach, FL 33402. If donating by check, please designate to the "Sue Cunningham Scholarship." Send condolences post-gazette.com/gb
