Sue Farley Newman Obituary

Sue Newman passed away peacefully on Friday, August 22, 2025, at Guardian Angel Homes in Richland, Washington, in the presence of family and caregivers.

Sue Carol Farley, born on January 25, 1936, in Old Hickory, Tennessee, was the first of four daughters born to Cordell and Mabel Farley. When she was nine, the family (now including two younger sisters, Lynda and Nancy) relocated to Richland, Washington, after Cordell answered the call to "Go West, Young Man," joining a host of others who came to Richland to work on the burgeoning project being built along the Columbia River just north of Richland by the Department of Energy.

Sue attended Richland Public Schools throughout her junior year in high school, during which time she participated in Camp Fire and Rainbow Girls, and crafts with Mabel at the dining room table. She also routinely walked her little sisters (Lynda and Nancy) down to the new Uptown Theater for the 10-cent Saturday matinees. During the summer of 1953, the youngest of the four "Farley Girls" (Becky) was born; shortly thereafter, the family relocated to Kennewick where Cordell (C.C.) and Mabel were building a home in the Highlands.

Sue transferred to Kennewick High School, where she graduated in1954. She worked for General Electric at Hanford before entering Oklahoma Baptist University in Shawnee, Oklahoma, graduating in1961 with a degree in Business and Home Economics. She worked briefly in Duncan, Oklahoma, where she served as Financial Secretary at a Baptist church, before returning to Kennewick to live with her family and work at Richland Baptist Church as secretary. It was there that she met a promising and handsome young man through membership in the choir. She remained in her position at the church until she became Mrs. Darrell F. Newman in June of 1966.

With her BS in Accounting in hand, Sue began a job at Westinghouse after she and Darrell married, where she worked until their son, Donnie, was born in 1974. Born with spina bifida, Donnie was a challenge to his family but also provided many moments of joy during his short life. He succumbed to side effects of his illness shortly after his third birthday in October of 1977. Sue returned to work at Westinghouse soon thereafter and continued there until she took early retirement some years later.

Sue was a person of faith, working in occasional mission settings during her college years, and was an active member at Richland Baptist Church, Central United Protestant Church, and the Kennewick First Presbyterian Church to a lesser extent as she and Darrell aged.

Sue was a dedicated homemaker and a gracious hostess for many events for her family and friends throughout the years. She will be remembered as conscientious, compassionate, meticulous, highly capable, truly generous, and always stylish. We will miss her!

When not entertaining, Sue was involved in ceramics, formidable stained-glass creations (some with husband Darrell) and quilting, producing many gorgeous pieces that her mother, sisters, and many outside the family have enjoyed. In addition, many opportunities for travels to fascinating parts of the world presented themselves during the 80's, 90's, and continuing into the early 2,000s, mostly on excursions and cruises with friends.

Almost anyone would agree that Sue had a life well-lived, with a beautiful home and yard, with many friends, and a loving family. A long-time Richland resident, Sue is survived by her sisters, Nancy Farley Schoonmaker (Bruce) and Rebecca Dawn Farley Ailes (Sidney); sister-in-law Carolyn Simon; and nephews Andrew and Martin Schoonmaker, Eric and Matthew Ailes, Charlie and David Newman, and Andrew Irwin, as well as her nieces Aleanna Ailes Moore, Kara Schoonmaker, Shannon Bryant-Spas, and Leslie Schoonmaker Dunlap, Vicki Shruhan, and Annisa Wright.

Sue was preceded in death by her parents, C.C. and Mabel Farley; by Darrell F. Newman, her husband of 57 years; by her son, Donald Farley Newman; and by her sister, Lynda Farley Schoonmaker.

The family thanks the many caring individuals who worked at Guardian Angel Homes in Richland, Washington, for their kind attention to Sue, and the staff of Heartlinks Hospice who attended Sue at the end. The family extends a special thank you to her personal caregivers, Janet Cons and Angie Martinez de Mejia, who provided an outstanding measure of care and kindness during Sue's final days. In addition, we owe Carolyn Simon, Darrell's sister, a huge debt of gratitude for making a home for Sue when Sue was no longer able to do so.

A short graveside service will take place on Friday, September 5, at 2:00 p.m. at Mueller's Desert Lawn Memorial Park & Crematorium in the north section at 10th Avenue and South Union Street in Kennewick for those who would like to attend.

A memorial service will be scheduled for a future date.