CALLAO—Susan Hull Hudson, 86, passed away peacefully at her home in Callao on June 3, 2022.
Born Mary Susan Hull on May 8, 1936, in Leavenworth, Kan., she was the daughter of Mary Louise Johnson and William Raleigh Hull Jr.
Raised in Weston, Mo., she attended West Platte High School before graduating from Columbia College and earning her bachelor’s from George Washington University in Washington, D.C. She later earned a master’s in communications from the University of Kansas.
In 1954, she supported her father’s first Congressional bid to represent the Sixth District of Missouri, joining other Hull family members campaigning across the district for each of Congressman Bill Hull’s next 11 terms in office.
Following her father to Washington, D.C., she pledged Kappa Kappa Gamma at GWU and represented Missouri as its Cherry Blossom Princess in the city’s annual Cherry Blossom Festival. While there, she met on a blind date her husband of 65 years, retired U.S. Marine Corps Col. Floyd G. Hudson. They were married in the nation’s capital in 1957.
As the proud wife of a Marine, duty stations included Washington, D.C., Oceanside, Calif., Oklahoma City, Okla., and Madrid, Spain, before returning to Weston in 1968. During this time, she was a Red Cross volunteer.
In 1968, following her husband’s retirement from the Marine Corps, she and her family returned to Weston—a town and community she loved—where they raised their four children on the family’s farm and opened up their hearts and home to so many.
She attended the Weston Christian Church, served in the PTA, enjoyed Study Club, championed the Weston Museum, and became a certified instructor of Effectiveness Communications. A passionate practitioner of effectiveness communications principles, she taught courses in the community, across the country, and in Taiwan—a memorable experience for her. As she and her four children attended the University of Kansas, she also became and remained an avid Jayhawks basketball fan.
In 1997, she and her husband sold the family farm and moved back to the Washington, D.C., area to be closer to their children. They eventually settled in Callao. She loved hosting her children, grandchildren (who affectionately nicknamed her “Poohzy” due to her love of Winnie the Pooh), extended family and friends for crab pickings and July 4th celebrations—a tradition she transported from Weston.
In keeping with her life-long commitment to service, she volunteered for Hospice. She also traveled with and hosted her special group of friends from Weston and returned there often to visit them, her Hull family, and the community she so loved.
A much-beloved wife, mother, grandmother, and friend, she is survived by her husband, Floyd G. Hudson; her four children, Cynthia Susan Hudson, Floyd Brent Hudson, Stacey Hudson Padova and Lee Hudson Metsala and their surviving spouses; seven grandchildren; and her brother, William R. Hull III.
Per her wishes, she will be interred at Arlington National Cemetery at a later date, and a celebration of her life will take place in Weston later in the year.
For those wishing to honor her, the family with great appreciation suggests donations to non-profits Hospice Support Services of Northern Neck (www.agingcare.com) and the Weston Historical Museum (www.westonhistoricalmuseum.org).
Welch Funeral Home of Warsaw handled the arrangements.
