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With deep sorrow, we announce the passing of (Minnie) Sue McEwan Pentecost. She departed gently on December 4, 2023 at home in Athens, Alabama, surrounded by her children and husband. Sue was a cherished wife, mother, sister, grandmother, and friend. Born on July 30, 1947, in Rosslyn, Kentucky, Sue’s life was a tapestry of dedication, love, and resilience.
Sue graduated from Leesburg High School in 1965 in Leesburg, Florida. She furthered her education at the University of Missouri-Columbia, where she studied accounting.
Sue spent many years in Cape Girardeau, Missouri, raising her children and actively supporting local organizations. She moved to Marion, Illinois and created a legacy of friends and a business before retiring, with her husband, to Athens, Alabama.
Determined and hardworking, Sue founded Target Marketing in 1992, a national, full-service advertising agency that won numerous awards, including multiple ADDY awards – the world’s largest competition, with more than 50,000 entries each year. She is remembered for her strength, wit, perseverance, and empathy.
Sue also built an impressive volunteer career alongside her professional one. For fifteen years, she served as a children’s advocate with CASA (Court-Appointed Special Advocates) of Williamson County, and on the board of directors of Ten by Three (formerly The Blessing Basket), empowering artisans around the world by connecting them with a global marketplace. She served on the board of directors of the Marion Chapter of Habitat for Humanity, and of the Otahki Council of Girl Scouts of America. She served as President of the Bell County Junior League. She was a founding member of the St Louis chapter of the Women Presidents Organization. She was a long-standing Rotary Club member, and a Paul Harris Fellow.
Sue was a magician in the kitchen; family favorites were chateaubriand, cheese grits and biscuits and gravy, and fried chicken. She loved the opera and symphony and served on the Board of Cape Girardeau Community Concerts. She loved her roses and gardening, and ran a test garden for Jackson Perkins in Cape Girardeau, as well. She was a member of the Order of the Eastern Star.
She was preceded in death by her parents, William and Frances (nee Richards) McEwan, and by her brothers and sister, James, Donald and Alex McEwan and Carolyn Thomasson.
She leaves behind her loving husband and best friend of 26 years, Ted Pentecost, of Athens, Alabama, with whom she shared a life filled with love, support, and mutual respect. She adored him – he must never forget.
Her children, Stephanie Lind and William Clevenger, and step-son Chris Pentecost, will carry her legacy of kindness, strength, and unconditional love. Sue was a beacon of guidance and support in their lives, always there with a listening ear and a helping hand.
Her grandchildren, Jackson Clevenger, Maximus Smith, and Nikita Smith brought immense joy and laughter into her life. She cherished every moment spent with them, and her influence will undoubtedly continue to shape their lives in the years to come.
She is also survived by her brothers, Patrick, Travis, Robert and by her sister, Elizabeth Ann Bauman as well as nephews and nieces, Don McEwan, Maura McEwan, Jarrod McEwan and Lauren McEwan.
In lieu of flowers, the family requests donations be made to Hospice of Limestone County in Athens, Alabama. The caregivers were instrumental in supporting Sue and her family through the last difficult months.
Her life will be celebrated on January 14, 2024 at the First Baptist Church of Athens, Alabama, where friends and family are invited to share memories and honor her remarkable journey.
Sue McEwan Pentecost will be deeply missed, but her light will never fade.