Susan J. (Short) Peairs

Susan J. Peairs, 86, of St. Petersburg, passed away Sunday, December 25, 2022 at her home.

Sue was born in Toledo, Ohio on March 8, 1936, the daughter of the late William and Florence LeValley Short.

She was a graduate of Hampton High School in Allison Park, PA, and Maryville College in Maryville, TN, and later earned a degree in education and teaching accreditation at the University of Pittsburgh.   She was a beloved elementary and secondary art teacher  and retired from Allegheny-Clarion Valley School District in Foxburg. 

For many years, Sue enjoyed teaching art classes in a variety of community settings, including a studio in Cranberry, PA.   She was a creative artist who enjoyed painting, sketching and teaching.  Sue was an avid gardener, and enthusiastically decorated her home for various holidays throughout the year. She was an animal lover and was especially fond of her cats.  Sue was a proud and loving mother and grandmother, and eagerly looked forward to her family’s gatherings.

She was preceded in death by her husband, Gerald R. “Jerry” Peairs, who passed away on July 2, 2020.  They were married on June 13, 1959 at the First Baptist Church in Oakland, Pennsylvania.  They moved to St. Petersburg in 1971, where she continued to teach and share her love of art in the community.

Sue is survived by two sons, Dr. Randall Peairs and his wife, Mary Clair, and Scott Peairs and his wife, Paula, and a daughter, Dr. Kimberly Peairs and her husband, Dr. Landon King. Sue was affectionately “Grammie” to her seven grandchildren, Emily and Harrison Peairs, Eric, Doug and Aiden Peairs, and Andrew and Margaret King. Sue and Jerry also had a surrogate son, Major Steven Spiker (wife, Christina, and sons, Ben and Heath), as well as a number of nieces and nephews.

In addition to her parents and husband, she was preceded in death by a brother, Dean Shorts.

Friends will be received at the Hile Funeral Home Inc., 802 Grove St., St. Petersburg, from 5-7 p.m. Wednesday, December 28.  A funeral service will be held in the funeral home at 11 a.m. Thursday, December 29, with the Rev. Dan Myers, a retired United Methodist pastor, officiating.  Interment will be in St. Petersburg Cemetery.  Memorial contributions may be made to the St. Petersburg Volunteer Fire Co., PO Box 81, St. Petersburg, PA 16054.  Condolences may be sent by visiting www.hilefh.com.

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