Sue Male died on May 14, 2022 at the age of 89. Her husband was the Rev. Don Male, who predeceased her.
Sue was born on Jan. 27, 1933 in Knoxville to her parents, Marie and Carl Anderson. Sue graduated from Knoxville High School in 1950. In 1952, while at UT Knoxville, she met and married John S.G. Williams. They had two children, Jennifer Williams Nourse and Carl Edward Parsons Williams. In 1957, she and John and Jennifer moved to Tullahoma. Divorced in 1967, Sue remarried in 1971 to “the love of her life,” Donald W. Male, and moved nearby to Manchester.
Sue was passionate about social justice issues, beginning initially as a volunteer for philanthropic organizations and political campaigns that met her social justice values. She proudly stated she was the “first white woman to join the local NAACP in the county” and played a role in typing up newsletters for the civil rights movement in the 1960s. Sue also helped to establish the first chapter of the National Organization for Women in the region.
During the late 1960s, Sue began work as an advocate for the founding of and administrator for the first Multi-County Mental Health Center. Moreover, Sue played a major role in establishing the Unitarian Universalist Church of Tullahoma, a church associated with progressive issues. Sue and Don also aided in financing the Unitarian Universalist Camp, the Mountain Retreat, in Highlands, NC.
Don’s three children, Sherry, Connie, and Peggy, and Sue’s two children enjoyed stays at “The Mountain.” In the late 1980’s and early 1990’s, Sue served as a UUA trustee representing the Southeast (TJ District).
In 1985, Sue completed her B.A. in urban planning at Middle Tennessee State University in Murfreesboro, TN. She graduated magna cum laude, finding employment as a city planner for Rutherford County in Murfreesboro, including speaking on television about urban issues. Later, Sue accepted a position as a paralegal for the David Bolin Law firm in Smyrna.
During her final years as a widow, Sue moved to Richmond, VA, where her daughter, Jennifer, lives. Despite her declining health, Sue was still able to calculate arithmetic problems and work her daily crossword puzzles up until the last weeks of her life. Sue will be remembered for her kind heart, her determination and intelligence, and her love of family and friends.
She is survived by children, Jennifer Williams Nourse, PhD., Richmond, VA; Carl Edward Parsons Williams, Spartanburg, SC; Sherry Male, Nashville, TN; Peggy Male Lenny, Indian Rock Beach, Florida; Connie Male Wilson, Cookeville, TN; seven grandchildren; and three great-grandchildren.
A memorial service for Sue will be held in Knoxville at the Unitarian Universalist Church on June 4, 2022 at 2 p.m. where her remains will be interred next to her husband, Donald Warren Male.
In lieu of flowers, donations may be made to the Unitarian Universalist Church of Tullahoma, TN, PO Box 331, Tullahoma, TN 37388. UURMaPA will donate $50 to the UU Church of Tullahoma in her memory.
Notes of condolence can be sent online.