| Graduation Year | Class of 1973 |
| Date of Passing | Sep 26, 2007 |
| About | Chalfant woman's knowledge, compassion inspiring By Jerry Vondas TRIBUNE-REVIEW Sunday, September 30, 2007 As a paralegal specializing in immigration matters for the Downtown law firm of K&L Gates, Susan Harmon was respected for her knowledge and compassion. "Sue was able to use her significant knowledge to assist our firm's immigration attorneys in helping to guide employers and foreign nationals through the maze of immigration paperwork," said her supervisor, attorney Barbara Bower. Susan E. Harmon, of Chalfant, died of pancreatic cancer on Wednesday, Sept. 26, 2007, in UPMC Braddock. She was 51. "Sue worked primarily on immigration and 'green card' immigration visa matters," added Bower. "Of course, in dealing with government bureaucracy, there are a lot of frustrations. "Sue had the compassion to often hold the hands and calm clients, who were undergoing these bureaucratic frustrations and talk to them and sympathize with them." Harmon's ability to comprehend the complexities involved with immigration matters can be attributed, said her brother, Brian Harmon, to his sister's membership in Mensa -- an international group that identifies and fosters human intelligence for the benefit of mankind. "Based on Sue's IQ scores, she had an IQ higher than 97 percent of the population," he added. Her brother, who was 19 years her junior, also recalled how his sister enjoyed traveling. "I traveled with Sue to Germany, where she easily made friends. And these friends," Harmon added, "like the friends she made in the U.K. (United Kingdom) continued to keep in touch with her." Born and raised in Chalfant, Ms. Harmon was one of five children in the family of Ronald W. and Norma Miller Harmon. Ms. Harmon was also known for her love of dogs. "We've always had dogs in our family," said her mother, Norma Harmon. "In recent years, Sue enjoyed taking Cuddles, our border collie, to agility trials. And she has 65 agility ribbons to show for her efforts." Ginny Allison, who would join Ms. Harmon in walking their dogs on weekends, recalled Ms. Harmon's passion for dogs. "I enjoyed watching Sue and Cuddles during the agility trials," said Allison. "They read each other as a book. That's what made their performances so special." After graduation from Churchill Area High School in 1972, where she sang with the choral group, she enrolled at what now is Clarion State University, where she received her degree in library science. While employed at several Downtown law firms, she received her master's degree in library science from the University of Pittsburgh while attending evening classes. "Sue was a very private person," Brian Harmon said. "Although she did help those in need financially, her thrust was to help those who needed additional instruction to help them with their careers or with their studies. "And because of her library science background, she was able to help aspiring writers with their manuscripts," he added. "Sue seldom spent money on herself. She bought a new computer for a niece and continued to use her 9-year-old computer." Ms. Harmon is survived by her parents, Ronald W. and Norma Miller Harmon, of Chalfant; siblings, Ronald Harmon, of Harrison City, Donald Harmon, of Lower Burrell, Jeffrey Harmon, of Penn Hills, and Brian Harmon, of Memphis, Tenn. Friends will be received from 2 to 4 and 7 to 9 p.m. Sunday at the Jobe Funeral Home Inc., Shaw and Triboro avenues, Turtle Creek, where services will be held at 10 a.m. Monday. Interment will follow in Restland-Lincoln Memorial Park, Monroeville. |
