Susan Rayelene Bracht of Minneola, Florida passed away on August 19, 2023 after a three-year battle with cancer. She faced that fight bravely, never letting her circumstances change her joyous outlook on life.

Susan was born to Tom and Janet Hardy in Victorville, California in 1967 but within a few months began moving from place to place due to Tom's job with the federal government, or as she put it "my dad was in the federal prison system".  She lived in many places growing up but spoke the most about her times in the Seattle and Baltimore areas.

After graduating high school in 1985, Susan attended the University of Maryland for a few years before moving to Nashville, Tennessee to complete her degree at Middle Tennessee State University. Since she was putting herself through school she went to school part-time, and after moving to Nashville began working at the Nashville Marriott Hotel.

It was there she met Eric, her husband of the last twenty-eight years. They were married in 1995 and moved to Atlanta, Georgia shortly after due to Eric's job with Marriott. During the three years they lived in Atlanta, Susan worked in retail management until they became parents for the first time when Ethan was born in 1997. The three of them moved to Clermont, Florida in 1998, and Susan was able to work part-time so that she could spend more time at home doing what she loved, being a mom. Three became four in 1999 when Emily was born, and the family was complete in 2002 with the birth of Ryan.

Susan loved her family more than anything in the world, and it showed. When the kids were young she was very active in clubs, organizations, and playgroups to make sure they (and she) had plenty of friends, many of whom have been friends ever since. Once all the kids were in school she decided on a second career as a teacher. She started out as a substitute teacher before earning her certification and becoming a full-time classroom teacher at Grassy Lake Elementary School.

As the kids grew, she got them involved in all sorts of activities, and of course volunteered with many of those organizations. As those activities turned into school sports she was always in the stands cheering them on and socializing with all of the other parents. She was so proud of all three of her kids as they graduated high school and moved on to careers, college, and the U.S. Army.

Five years ago she was thrilled to become a grandma, or "Mimi", to grandson Carson and looked forward to his week-end visits.

Family and friends meant everything to Susan, including spending many weekends out on the lakes, celebrating holidays, special events, and camping with a special group of very close friends. When it came to family vacations it was always to the beach. Susan's favorite place to be was on the water, whether it be the lake or the ocean, surrounded by her family and friends.

She is preceded in her next great adventure by her parents Tom and Janet and leaves behind her husband Eric, sons Ethan and Ryan, daughter Emily, grandson Carson, brother Scott (Yvonne), sister Victoria, extended family, friends and co-workers. She was a bright light to so many people and an inspiration to anyone experiencing a difficulty or hardship.

A service to celebrate Susan's life and the happiness she spread to others will be held on Sunday, September 17th at 2:00 pm Eastern in the Wesley Center at Living Hope Church Clermont.