FAIRMONT — They say it’s hard to forget someone who gave you so much to remember and that is true of Sue Nelson, who was a mother, sister, daughter, colleague and friend to so many.

Having recently passed away, Sue is remembered by all whom she touched during her 57 years of life.

Sue was born in Fairmont to Robert and Evelyn Kay Kloeckner. Upon graduating from Fairmont High School in 1979, she attended Mankato State University and graduated with a degree in business management.

Soon after graduating, Sue took a job at Fairmont Area Schools, where she would work for 32 years, the last 16 as the business manager. Being the business manager, Sue was responsible for all the district’s finances, up until her recent retirement in September of this year.

Fairmont Area Schools Superintendent Joe Brown worked closely with Sue in the eight years he has been in the district. He noted that in the 32 years that Sue worked, she held several different positions but remained an employee of the district for all those years.

“It’s so uncommon in this day and age, when young kids are getting out of high school or college, it’s estimated that most people will have seven different careers,” Brown said. “Sue basically had one, serving in the business area of Fairmont Area Schools.”

Brown said he and Sue worked closely together, as their offices were next door in the district office at Fairmont Elementary School.

“The thing about Sue is, she was very consistent and she had high expectations of everyone,” said Brown, adding, “She was so highly respected by everyone who worked with her. She did her job and she did it well. She was an outstanding public servant.”

Longtime school board member and treasurer Julie Laue also worked closely with Sue for many years. Laue recalls Sue always had a plan and was strategic in her work. Laue remembers Sue as being professional and always prepared before going on TV to present the district’s financial report during the school board meetings.

“I don’t think she failed much,” she said. “She had high expectations for herself and for the district and for our board. I don’t know where we would have been without her.”

In addition to her work at Fairmont Area Schools, Sue served on the Martin County West Booster Club Board and was a member of the Minnesota Association of School Business Officials.

Sue and her husband, Rodney, lived on the north side of Fox Lake. The couple have two children, Ryan, who lives in Mankato, and Megan, who lives with her husband, Beau, in Huron, S.D. Sue also has four siblings, David and James Kloeckner of Fairmont, Tom Kloeckner of Oshkosh, Wis., and Karin Schultz of Fairmont. Her parents and in-laws also live in the area.

Brother Dave shared how much family meant to Sue.

“She was absolutely full of life and between her family and her work, that was her life,” he said. “That’s what she did. She also had a ton of friends, that’s the third thing. She loved to plan parties at her house and have us all over. It didn’t matter if it was family or friends, she loved to entertain.”

“My mom was not just my mom, she became my best friend over the years,” Megan said. “She was the life-of-the-party type of person. She was my mom but all my friends called her ‘Momma Sue.’ They all became so close to her and she even came on my bachelorette party.”

Seven weeks ago, Megan gave birth to a son, Guy, who is Sue’s only grandchild. Sue and Rod were able to be in Huron, S.D., when he was born.

“I seriously think that knowing he was coming gave her the strength to push through a lot of those treatments when she probably didn’t really want to go through it,” Megan said. “It gave her that light at the end of the tunnel.”

Dave shared that in the past few weeks, he loved calling Sue “Grandma Sue” just to see her face light up.

Megan said she and her brother were able to be home and spend a lot of time with their mother the last few weeks. For Thanksgiving, a lot of family members were able to go to Sue and Rod’s home and have a family gathering.

“We talked a lot about memories that everyone’s had with her throughout the years,” Megan said. “Everyone told her how much they appreciate her for different things and it was cool because not very many people get a chance to have that.”

Megan went on to say that since Sue’s cancer diagnosis two years ago, she feels like her mom did more in those two years than some people do in their whole lives, including going on some vacations and to several concerts.

Dave echoed that sentiment: “She did not let the cancer slow her down one bit. She went to work on days I never thought she should have. The school district was very good to her. You couldn’t have asked for anything better in the way they let her do what she needed to do.”

Megan said that retiring from her job at Fairmont Area was hard for her mother because she truly loved what she did. But, in the end, it was the necessary thing needed to do to take care of herself.

Those close to Sue will remember her excitement for life and how much she cared about her work, friends and family.

A visitation for Sue will be held from 5-9 p.m. today at United Methodist Church in Fairmont. A Celebration of Life service will take place at 10:30 a.m. Saturday at United Methodist Church.