Susan Jenée Stark

August 2, 1968 - November 1, 2021

On Monday November 1, 2021 Susan Jenée Stark broke free from a body long plagued by pain and chronic illness and was immediately in the presence of her Lord and Saviour where she is robed in an eternally perfected body that can only know worship and praise. What a victory Susan has through Jesus Christ her Saviour! The Bible tells us in Romans chapter 8 that when God is for you not even death can be against you! God has perfectly completed the work that He began in Susan before her life even began.

Dear family and friends, I’m so glad each one of us can have victory over death and the grave because of Jesus. I’m letting you know that the victory I have in Jesus is precisely what gives me hope. I’m so glad that 1 Corinthians 15:57 says that even today we can still be thankful to God who has given us victory in Jesus Christ. I’m SO glad that I KNOW Romans 8:1 says there is therefore no condemnation to those who are in Christ... Read more Jesus! Why?? Because we have victory in Jesus Christ.

I KNOW that my sister was foreknown and predestined to be conformed in the image of God’s only Son! She was justified, she was called and now she is glorified. What then can we say? If God is for you, not even death can be against you, because we have victory in Jesus Christ! I understand that in this world we will have loss and we will have trouble but we will ultimately have victory in Jesus because He has already overcome the world! I’m letting you know that even though I am afflicted by the loss of my big sister, I am not crushed. I am perplexed but I will not be driven to despair! Because we have victory in Jesus Christ! I am strengthened by Him. And I KNOW that God has completed the work that He started in Susan. I understand that all things work together for good for those who love God and are called according to His purpose because we have victory in Jesus Christ. Even in death Susan is very much alive because she found victory in Jesus’ mighty Name!

During the month of October when Susan was in the hospital we had a world-wide team of warriors praying mightily for healing. I desperately wanted to share a testimony of how my sister’s life was snatched from death. I wanted to glorify God with a testimony to His healing power in Susan’s body. Well, as it happens, I’m not God and I don’t control much at all so that’s not how my sister’s earthly story ended. Nevertheless, I want you to know that just because God didn’t answer those many prayers in the way I think would have been best, it doesn’t mean He didn’t answer. There was always going to be only one of two answers: either Susan was going to live, or she was going to LIVE! Either Susan was going to be healed, or she was going to be HEALED! Either she was going to be with family here, or she was going to be with family in Glory. The answer was always going to be yes or yes. Victory belongs to Jesus!

My big sister was born in Emporia, Kansas, USA on August 2, 1968. She was the first of three children in our family and, from her earliest days, her boundless creativity was evident. She had a beautiful alto voice and we sang together for most of our lives. As kids Susan, Stephen and I wrote and acted in MANY performances for our parents - skits, musicals, puppet shows, you name it, we subjected our parents to it! Whenever we had family road trips we girls brought our hymnals and the entire family would sing with Dad, Susan, and I singing the harmonies and Mom and Stephen carrying the melody. When we got a little older Susan’s creativity was evident in other ways. Like when she taught me to drive in her Mazda 626 in the parking lot at Coquitlam Centre BEFORE I had my license. Or when she took Stephen to his first movie - something we weren’t allowed to do in our house - and when he got startled and said a bad word she just laughed with him. (He just recently told me that story and, no, I won’t tell you what the bad word was.). She also took me to my first movie only we took the bus clear down to Robson Street just to be sure no one from the church saw us. But I wasn’t capable of withholding truth so I told my mom within minutes of us returning home later that day. Boy, was Susan mad at me over that one!

Back to her love of singing….. Susan also sang to each of her kids from the very moment she knew she was carrying them. At some point during the pregnancy she would settle on a hymn that she felt God gave her for that child. I found her list of those hymns in a box of special treasures as I sorted through her house in December:

*Joel: All The Way My Savior Leads Me
*Caitlin: When He Cometh (Jewels) and The Solid Rock
* Hannah: Guide Me Oh Thou Great Jehovah
* Noah: He Leadeth Me
* Zachary: Children Of The Heavenly Father
* Sara: Until Then

Susan was also an accomplished writer from a very young age — I have so enjoyed reading through the many, many poems, short stories, blogs, and newspaper columns that she had written throughout her life. One article that she wrote several years ago for the Dawson Creek Mirror has called me back to read over and over again since she passed. The article is entitled “The Gauzy Curtain” and here is a short excerpt from it:

Susan writes: Today I had a message from a friend, someone I have always looked up to. God has always seemed to be more real to her than to most of us, and I always hoped that by spending time with her some of that clear vision would rub off on me. My friend is in the last few, precious days of a terminal illness. She is rarely awake now, and I didn’t expect to hear from her again this side of heaven, but I opened my email and read: “Things are peaceful, God is so near and I’m awfully weary of dealing with the pain. I’ve admired the heck outta you and the courage you have to stand up against crushing attacks. It’s been a privilege to get to know you. See you on the other side of the gauzy curtain and we will DANCE!”

Susan ended this article by saying this: Just as a heavy veil hid the Old Testament Holy of Holies from view, with access permitted only for those whom God called, so an unseen veil separates life on earth from eternity in heaven, lifting only to permit entry for those He calls home. Save me a dance, sweet sister! I love you and will miss you terribly, with your wisdom and wise counsel. Goodbye for now until we meet at the feet of the One who died so that we can live forever.

Susan closed her article with this Scripture: Now we see a dim reflection, as if we were looking in a mirror, but then we shall see clearly. Now I know only a part, but then I will know fully, as God has known me. 1 Corinthians 13:12.

This poem that she wrote when she was a young adult is also one of my favourites:

Sifting out the tangled weave
Of precious lives through mine
I come upon a special one
And suddenly I find
Reflections pure and beautiful,
Effects I can’t explain
Impact of tremendous worth,
Refreshing desert rain.

Shimmers bright, this priceless strand,
Woven strong and deep.
Whispers softly, sweet and sure,
Of promises to keep.

One strand short, my beauty would
Be shallow, incomplete.
Oceans vast could never quench
The burning, lonely heat.

Grateful I will ever be
For one short strand, a soul,
Glowing in my memory
A firebrand, a coal.

Susan could also organize events beautifully and every single detail would be so well thought out. And she never met a craft that she wasn’t willing to try (and usually excel at).

Susan battled many health problems including Chronic Lyme Disease for most of her adult life. In her final years she was often forced to sleep or rest far more than she would have liked, due to crushing pain and crippling fatigue. Even when she felt her worst she still enjoyed laying in bed and having her kids gathered around to tell her about their day or various things happening in their lives.

Susan would be the first to tell you that her greatest accomplishment and living legacy is her six children: Joel Robert, Caitlin Jenée (and husband Ovi), Hannah Courtney (and husband Alex and son - Susan’s grandson - Ezra Joel), Noah Donald James (and fiancé April), Zachary Michael, and Sara Faith. When we were young it was always assumed that I would be the one to have many children because I spent every spare second of my time in the presence of children. Susan, on the other hand, would babysit as necessary for the income but she would much prefer pet-sitting or mowing lawns to earn extra money. But, I tell you what….. once she was married and once she and Jim began their family she blossomed and made it her life mission to be the best mom possible.

An old friend of Susan’s shared a story with me recently of a time when they both took their young children on a day trip to Bellingham. This friend told me she had made sure to bring all the documents for her kids so there would be no issues at the border. When the border agent asked for proof of who the children belonged to, this friend produced her documents but Susan simply said, “I’ll be happy to nurse my child for you!” Yep, that was my sister ….. if there was an unconventional way to accomplish a task, that’s the way she would go!

In addition to her children and grandson, Susan is survived by our parents Michael and Lynda Stark, sister Rochelle Stark, and brother Stephen Stark. She is also survived by many special aunts, uncles, cousins and cherished friends. Susan’s beloved dogs Tikka (who now lives with my brother and I in Minnesota) and Sadie (who lives with Noah and April) and her cat Jack (also living with Noah and April) were always by her side and will also miss her deeply.

Susan was preceded in death by her babies lost to miscarriage; her grandparents: Donald and Clara Stark, Donald and Pat Baldwin, Wanda York, and Courtney James; and Uncles Russell Baldwin, David Baldwin, and Jimmy York. Her dog Lulu followed Susan in death on November 11, 2021.

Although we may no longer physically see Susan, I believe she has left an indelible mark on all of us privileged enough to have known her. We will miss her witty sense of humor, her contagious smile, her zest for life and her creative spirit. She will be deeply loved forever and will never be forgotten. This service today is for us, not for Susan. We cry on this side of heaven, but Susan is not crying any more. She is now among the heavenly ranks with our great Saviour and she would want us to find comfort in knowing she is free from pain and joyfully at home with her Heavenly Father and her loved ones gone before.

I would like to let Susan have the final words of this, her eulogy, so I will close by reading two of the articles she wrote and published under her pen name Jenée Baldwin, in the Dawson Creek Mirror:

“On Those Final Words”
(Insert article here)

“On The Ceremony of a Funeral”
(Insert article here)

I love you, big sister and I’m SO grateful that I know for certain I will see you again!

You know what……. I may have misled you kind folks, there are a few more thoughts that I’m certain Susan would want said on her behalf…..

If you were to write your life’s summary right now, would you be satisfied with it? If not, you have the choice today while there is still breath in your lungs to rewrite it. Because every one of us longs for the day when we will hear the words that Susan has already heard: “Well done, my good and faithful servant, well done.”

Jesus Christ entered this broken world and lived a perfect life because you can’t. He satisfied holy God’s requirement of perfection because you could never have the ability to do so. He died to take the death that each of us deserve on Himself. He conquered death and rose from the grave to prove that our debt was paid in full. He is the Way, the Truth, and the Life and no one can come to the Father except through Him. There is no other way. You cannot take a shortcut, you cannot take a detour. If you cannot be absolutely certain that when you are granted your final breath on this earth your very next breath will be taken in God’s Glory then I want to offer you the greatest gift Susan ever accepted and the greatest gift you’ll ever receive: Jesus Christ.

Will you pray this prayer now?

“Lord Jesus I know that I am a sinner, and I desperately need a Saviour. I pray right now that You will save me. I believe that You died on the cross for my sin. I believe that You rose from the dead for me. And I’m asking You to enter my life and save me, so that through Your death and life I can satisfy God’s requirement. Thank You Jesus for the victory over death that You have imparted to me. In Jesus’ Name. Amen.” If you have prayed this prayer today please tell someone who is a Christian — you’re welcome to send me a message on Facebook or on Susan’s EverLoved memorial website— and find a local Bible believing church to fellowship and worship with.

On behalf of Susan and all of our family, thank you for joining us today to celebrate her life. Read less

Susan Jenée Stark

August 2, 1968 - November 1, 2021

On Monday November 1, 2021 Susan Jenée Stark broke free from a body long plagued by pain and chronic illness and was immediately in the presence of her Lord and Saviour where she is robed in an eternally perfected body that can only know worship and praise. What a victory Susan has through Jesus Christ her Saviour! The Bible tells us in Romans chapter 8 that when God is for you not even death can be against you! God has perfectly completed... Read more the work that He began in Susan before her life even began.

Dear family and friends, I’m so glad each one of us can have victory over death and the grave because of Jesus. I’m letting you know that the victory I have in Jesus is precisely what gives me hope. I’m so glad that 1 Corinthians 15:57 says that even today we can still be thankful to God who has given us victory in Jesus Christ. I’m SO glad that I KNOW Romans 8:1 says there is therefore no condemnation to those who are in Christ Jesus! Why?? Because we have victory in Jesus Christ.

I KNOW that my sister was foreknown and predestined to be conformed in the image of God’s only Son! She was justified, she was called and now she is glorified. What then can we say? If God is for you, not even death can be against you, because we have victory in Jesus Christ! I understand that in this world we will have loss and we will have trouble but we will ultimately have victory in Jesus because He has already overcome the world! I’m letting you know that even though I am afflicted by the loss of my big sister, I am not crushed. I am perplexed but I will not be driven to despair! Because we have victory in Jesus Christ! I am strengthened by Him. And I KNOW that God has completed the work that He started in Susan. I understand that all things work together for good for those who love God and are called according to His purpose because we have victory in Jesus Christ. Even in death Susan is very much alive because she found victory in Jesus’ mighty Name!

During the month of October when Susan was in the hospital we had a world-wide team of warriors praying mightily for healing. I desperately wanted to share a testimony of how my sister’s life was snatched from death. I wanted to glorify God with a testimony to His healing power in Susan’s body. Well, as it happens, I’m not God and I don’t control much at all so that’s not how my sister’s earthly story ended. Nevertheless, I want you to know that just because God didn’t answer those many prayers in the way I think would have been best, it doesn’t mean He didn’t answer. There was always going to be only one of two answers: either Susan was going to live, or she was going to LIVE! Either Susan was going to be healed, or she was going to be HEALED! Either she was going to be with family here, or she was going to be with family in Glory. The answer was always going to be yes or yes. Victory belongs to Jesus!

My big sister was born in Emporia, Kansas, USA on August 2, 1968. She was the first of three children in our family and, from her earliest days, her boundless creativity was evident. She had a beautiful alto voice and we sang together for most of our lives. As kids Susan, Stephen and I wrote and acted in MANY performances for our parents - skits, musicals, puppet shows, you name it, we subjected our parents to it! Whenever we had family road trips we girls brought our hymnals and the entire family would sing with Dad, Susan, and I singing the harmonies and Mom and Stephen carrying the melody. When we got a little older Susan’s creativity was evident in other ways. Like when she taught me to drive in her Mazda 626 in the parking lot at Coquitlam Centre BEFORE I had my license. Or when she took Stephen to his first movie - something we weren’t allowed to do in our house - and when he got startled and said a bad word she just laughed with him. (He just recently told me that story and, no, I won’t tell you what the bad word was.). She also took me to my first movie only we took the bus clear down to Robson Street just to be sure no one from the church saw us. But I wasn’t capable of withholding truth so I told my mom within minutes of us returning home later that day. Boy, was Susan mad at me over that one!

Back to her love of singing….. Susan also sang to each of her kids from the very moment she knew she was carrying them. At some point during the pregnancy she would settle on a hymn that she felt God gave her for that child. I found her list of those hymns in a box of special treasures as I sorted through her house in December:

*Joel: All The Way My Savior Leads Me
*Caitlin: When He Cometh (Jewels) and The Solid Rock
* Hannah: Guide Me Oh Thou Great Jehovah
* Noah: He Leadeth Me
* Zachary: Children Of The Heavenly Father
* Sara: Until Then

Susan was also an accomplished writer from a very young age — I have so enjoyed reading through the many, many poems, short stories, blogs, and newspaper columns that she had written throughout her life. One article that she wrote several years ago for the Dawson Creek Mirror has called me back to read over and over again since she passed. The article is entitled “The Gauzy Curtain” and here is a short excerpt from it:

Susan writes: Today I had a message from a friend, someone I have always looked up to. God has always seemed to be more real to her than to most of us, and I always hoped that by spending time with her some of that clear vision would rub off on me. My friend is in the last few, precious days of a terminal illness. She is rarely awake now, and I didn’t expect to hear from her again this side of heaven, but I opened my email and read: “Things are peaceful, God is so near and I’m awfully weary of dealing with the pain. I’ve admired the heck outta you and the courage you have to stand up against crushing attacks. It’s been a privilege to get to know you. See you on the other side of the gauzy curtain and we will DANCE!”

Susan ended this article by saying this: Just as a heavy veil hid the Old Testament Holy of Holies from view, with access permitted only for those whom God called, so an unseen veil separates life on earth from eternity in heaven, lifting only to permit entry for those He calls home. Save me a dance, sweet sister! I love you and will miss you terribly, with your wisdom and wise counsel. Goodbye for now until we meet at the feet of the One who died so that we can live forever.

Susan closed her article with this Scripture: Now we see a dim reflection, as if we were looking in a mirror, but then we shall see clearly. Now I know only a part, but then I will know fully, as God has known me. 1 Corinthians 13:12.

This poem that she wrote when she was a young adult is also one of my favourites:

Sifting out the tangled weave
Of precious lives through mine
I come upon a special one
And suddenly I find
Reflections pure and beautiful,
Effects I can’t explain
Impact of tremendous worth,
Refreshing desert rain.

Shimmers bright, this priceless strand,
Woven strong and deep.
Whispers softly, sweet and sure,
Of promises to keep.

One strand short, my beauty would
Be shallow, incomplete.
Oceans vast could never quench
The burning, lonely heat.

Grateful I will ever be
For one short strand, a soul,
Glowing in my memory
A firebrand, a coal.

Susan could also organize events beautifully and every single detail would be so well thought out. And she never met a craft that she wasn’t willing to try (and usually excel at).

Susan battled many health problems including Chronic Lyme Disease for most of her adult life. In her final years she was often forced to sleep or rest far more than she would have liked, due to crushing pain and crippling fatigue. Even when she felt her worst she still enjoyed laying in bed and having her kids gathered around to tell her about their day or various things happening in their lives.

Susan would be the first to tell you that her greatest accomplishment and living legacy is her six children: Joel Robert, Caitlin Jenée (and husband Ovi), Hannah Courtney (and husband Alex and son - Susan’s grandson - Ezra Joel), Noah Donald James (and fiancé April), Zachary Michael, and Sara Faith. When we were young it was always assumed that I would be the one to have many children because I spent every spare second of my time in the presence of children. Susan, on the other hand, would babysit as necessary for the income but she would much prefer pet-sitting or mowing lawns to earn extra money. But, I tell you what….. once she was married and once she and Jim began their family she blossomed and made it her life mission to be the best mom possible.

An old friend of Susan’s shared a story with me recently of a time when they both took their young children on a day trip to Bellingham. This friend told me she had made sure to bring all the documents for her kids so there would be no issues at the border. When the border agent asked for proof of who the children belonged to, this friend produced her documents but Susan simply said, “I’ll be happy to nurse my child for you!” Yep, that was my sister ….. if there was an unconventional way to accomplish a task, that’s the way she would go!

In addition to her children and grandson, Susan is survived by our parents Michael and Lynda Stark, sister Rochelle Stark, and brother Stephen Stark. She is also survived by many special aunts, uncles, cousins and cherished friends. Susan’s beloved dogs Tikka (who now lives with my brother and I in Minnesota) and Sadie (who lives with Noah and April) and her cat Jack (also living with Noah and April) were always by her side and will also miss her deeply.

Susan was preceded in death by her babies lost to miscarriage; her grandparents: Donald and Clara Stark, Donald and Pat Baldwin, Wanda York, and Courtney James; and Uncles Russell Baldwin, David Baldwin, and Jimmy York. Her dog Lulu followed Susan in death on November 11, 2021.

Although we may no longer physically see Susan, I believe she has left an indelible mark on all of us privileged enough to have known her. We will miss her witty sense of humor, her contagious smile, her zest for life and her creative spirit. She will be deeply loved forever and will never be forgotten. This service today is for us, not for Susan. We cry on this side of heaven, but Susan is not crying any more. She is now among the heavenly ranks with our great Saviour and she would want us to find comfort in knowing she is free from pain and joyfully at home with her Heavenly Father and her loved ones gone before.

I would like to let Susan have the final words of this, her eulogy, so I will close by reading two of the articles she wrote and published under her pen name Jenée Baldwin, in the Dawson Creek Mirror:

“On Those Final Words”
(Insert article here)

“On The Ceremony of a Funeral”
(Insert article here)

I love you, big sister and I’m SO grateful that I know for certain I will see you again!

You know what……. I may have misled you kind folks, there are a few more thoughts that I’m certain Susan would want said on her behalf…..

If you were to write your life’s summary right now, would you be satisfied with it? If not, you have the choice today while there is still breath in your lungs to rewrite it. Because every one of us longs for the day when we will hear the words that Susan has already heard: “Well done, my good and faithful servant, well done.”

Jesus Christ entered this broken world and lived a perfect life because you can’t. He satisfied holy God’s requirement of perfection because you could never have the ability to do so. He died to take the death that each of us deserve on Himself. He conquered death and rose from the grave to prove that our debt was paid in full. He is the Way, the Truth, and the Life and no one can come to the Father except through Him. There is no other way. You cannot take a shortcut, you cannot take a detour. If you cannot be absolutely certain that when you are granted your final breath on this earth your very next breath will be taken in God’s Glory then I want to offer you the greatest gift Susan ever accepted and the greatest gift you’ll ever receive: Jesus Christ.

Will you pray this prayer now?

“Lord Jesus I know that I am a sinner, and I desperately need a Saviour. I pray right now that You will save me. I believe that You died on the cross for my sin. I believe that You rose from the dead for me. And I’m asking You to enter my life and save me, so that through Your death and life I can satisfy God’s requirement. Thank You Jesus for the victory over death that You have imparted to me. In Jesus’ Name. Amen.” If you have prayed this prayer today please tell someone who is a Christian — you’re welcome to send me a message on Facebook or on Susan’s EverLoved memorial website— and find a local Bible believing church to fellowship and worship with.

On behalf of Susan and all of our family, thank you for joining us today to celebrate her life. Read less