Susan Sheppard, mentioned poet, writer, artist and creator of the Haunted Parkersburg Ghost Tours, died at her dwelling on Monday, April 19, 2021, right after a quick but courageous battle with most cancers.
She was born July 1, 1955, in Clarksburg, WV, a daughter of the late George Warren Close friend and Gwendolyn Noreen (Chapman) Buddy.
She grew up in West Union, WV, prior to transferring to Parkersburg in 1974.
A graduate of Doddridge County Higher University, Susan also attended WVU-Parkersburg, the University of Charleston, the University of Pittsburgh, and Warren Wilson Higher education in Swannanoa, NC.
(Far more particulars about Susan’s daily life and operate might be located in the future April 24/25 edition of The Parkersburg Information and Sentinel.)
In excess of the several years, she also researched with Gwendolyn Brooks, a Pulitzer Prize-winning poet noted area portrait artist Dorothy Decker and quite a few other poets and writers.
Susan entered and received a lot of awards in excess of the years from West Virginia Writers, an firm she helped to produce.
Susan wrote the e-book and developed the primary playing cards for use with her past-everyday living divinatory tool, named “The Phoenix Playing cards,” that was posted in 1990. The book and cards have been translated into numerous different languages and have bought a lot more than 65,000 copies all over the world.
Though residing in Pittsburgh in the late 1980s, Susan was active in the nearby poetry scene there. Which is the place she befriended fellow author Yun Wang, who not long ago gathered some of Susan’s poetry into a selection that will be published afterwards this year, referred to as “Glamoury.”
Shortly just after going again to West Virginia from Pittsburgh in 1990, Susan was employed by KDKA-Television in Pittsburgh to do astrological forecasts, which ended up offered on the station’s early morning clearly show. She was also the astrologer for “Seventeen” magazine for extra than a 12 months.
For practically 20 many years, she appeared on WTAP’s “Daybreak” display, carrying out month to month astrology forecasts.
In the 1990s, Susan started studying and presenting talks about hauntings and the heritage of downtown Parkersburg and the encompassing regions. Eventually, these talks progressed into the “Haunted Parkersburg Strolling Tours,” which she and her helpers presented on weekends for the duration of the Halloween season for the previous 25 decades.
Susan’s Excursions became some of the most well known in the US, according to numerous sites that rank them. She also appeared on several nationally-broadcast Tv reveals about the hauntings in the Mid-Ohio Valley on the Vacation Channel, Syfy Channel and many others.
The “creation” of which she was proudest, was her daughter, Scarlet, who was born in 1991. Scarlet carries on Susan’s creativeness and passion and has been a section of the Haunted Parkersburg Ghost Tours due to the fact she was really small. Susan’s oil painting of Scarlet, standing on the ways at the New Orleans home of creator Anne Rice, is a heat display screen of Susan’s love for her daughter.
Susan battled many crippling auto-immune signs and symptoms which went mostly undiagnosed and untreated even with her efforts to find their root bring about. It is outstanding that she accomplished as much as she did with so very little strength, but unfortunate that her wellbeing kept her from accomplishing even a lot more of her goals.
She is survived by her daughter, Scarlet Sheppard, of Arcadia, CA brother James (Janet) and their son Tyler, of West Union sister Carla (David) Marks, their son Ryan, and Ryan’s son, Ethan, all of South Issue, OH brother Christopher of Parkersburg uncle W.P. Chapman, Jr., of Cairo, WV aunt Sandra (Don) Sandy of Parkersburg and lots of other cousins.
She is also survived by her near close friend, Brady Youthful her lifetime extensive very best buddy, Regina (Ball) Metzger of Ga, who was with her when she handed and her previous spouse, Roger Sheppard (Anna), of Davisville.
In addition to her parents, she was preceded in loss of life by other relatives in the West Union and Cairo parts
Susan’s family members would like to thank fellow poet and pal, Sherrell Wigal, for her help in the previous few months, together with Lynn Feick Stone, Becky Sheehy and her daughter Jenny, and Susan’s current caregivers Shantel Gainer, Kim Wilson, Arlene Woodfin and the people at Amedisys Residence Health.
To honor Susan and rejoice her existence, the community is invited to a New Orleans-type memorial stroll commencing at 3 p.m. this Sunday, April 25. Dress in your spooky Sunday best (with comfy shoes!) Social distancing and protective masks are inspired.
Rain or glow, the wander will start out at Bicentennial Park close to the Blennerhassett Lodge and carry on up Market Avenue to 9th Road. It will then switch west for a person block and then go north on Juliana Avenue. The walk will close at the gates of Riverview Cemetery. There, individuals will be invited to share reminiscences and go away mementos (flowers, notes, and many others) guiding.
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