Susan Hanna Mayer, born November 4, 1952, in Milwaukee, Wisc., to Hanno and Mary (Hanna) Mayer, died surrounded by loving friends on January 9, 2015, in Arcata, after a courageous battle against pancreatic cancer. She was preceded in death by her mother, father, step-mother (Leore), and sister (Julie), and survived by her sister Mary E. Buchholz of Texas, and by cousins, nieces and nephews.

Susan’s travels, which began in Europe in 1975, where she lived 13 years in the small Bavarian town of Garmisch-Partenkirchen, led her to SE Asia and other parts of Europe.

She returned to the U.S in 1987, worked in real estate and as a photographer in Chico, before moving to Humboldt in 1991. Susan worked at Abruzzi, the Plaza Grill, and co-owned the popular Sunnyside Pub and Eatery in Sunnybrae. After completing her BA and MA at HSU, she taught there from 1994-98.

A passionate teacher with a wicked sense of humor as well as lightheartedness, she taught in the SF area, then finished her MA in TESOL (Teaching English to Speakers of Other Languages) in May 2014, having planned to travel to the Republic of Georgia for the Peace Corps.

In lieu of flowers, please donate to the following: Humboldt Baykeeper  (www.humboldtbaykeeper.org), Northcoast Environmental Center (www.yournec.org), or Hand to Paw (www.carefordogs.org)

Memorials: March 28 and 29, small gathering in Arcata, California. For more info on memorials please leave a message at (510) 910-1042, or contact: FriendsOfSusan@sbcglobal.net

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The above obituary was submitted by Susan Mayer’s friends. The Lost Coast Outpost runs obituaries of Humboldt County residents at no charge. Email news@lostcoastoutpost.com.