Susan Lynne Hunt Manes

The strongest woman we will ever know slipped back home to her Heavenly Father on November 24, 2025.

Susan Lynne Hunt was born on November 1, 1957 to Robert “Bob” Richard Hunt and LouEllen Siddoway Hunt in Craig, Colorado. Susan was always ready for an adventure, big or small. Some of her favorite childhood memories were getting up late at night with her brother to eat deviled eggs and watch television with the volume low to not wake anyone else up, and sneakily going for dune buggy rides around the countryside of Grand Junction, CO with her sister and having to walk a long way to call their no-questions-asked grandma to come tow them home in the middle of the night when they had an electrical problem, and going on large motorcycle camping trips that their parents organized through the family business, Sports Center, or their many family boating trips. Susan had special memories with her grandparents and we know their reunion was joyful! Her maternal grandma, who we all called Nana, was the ultimate example of what a grandma should be, even letting her eat plates of honey with a spoon under the dining room table. Her paternal grandparents, Fay and T-Bone (but she called him Grandaddy), would take her on trips to east Texas to visit family and she loved getting to connect with her family roots. Grandaddy taught her to make his famous peanut candy and Fay always had a book for her to read.

After high school, she moved to Denver to attend and graduate from culinary school. She started cooking for her family from a young age. She was a super taster and could recreate dishes without recipes. It was intimidating to watch how easily she moved about her kitchen making delicious food. Susan then worked in country clubs doing amazing things in pastry to put herself through university. She graduated from the University of Wyoming with an accounting degree. She started working for Peter Kiewit and Sons Construction as an operator and worked her way into the office, working in many places across Wyoming and Nebraska. While working for Kiewit, she met and married John Manes in Omaha, NE. Two years later their daughter, Cassandra, was born and another two years later their son, Zachary, was born. In 1997, the family moved to Sandy, UT for the I-15 reconstruction project. Susan and John divorced a few years later, but were always respectful to one another and always prioritized the well being of their children.

Susan worked a wide variety of jobs (preferably in fast paced construction accounting), traveled the world (Austria and the Soviet Union, Egypt, Jerusalem, Vietnam, China, Peru, and many family trips to Mexico), and did many amazing things, but her pride and joy have always been her children. She loved us fiercely! She did not want her 2006 stage 4 metastatic breast cancer diagnosis to define her life, but it strengthened her resolve to do hard things and to fight and fight to stay here and be our mom. She told us how much she has missed her mom and that she didn't want to do that to us too soon. She always knew she would live long enough to see us grown (even if the doctors had their doubts), but she was overjoyed to get to be Nene to her three delightful grandsons. They have been the joy she needed to keep her going these last 6 years. She loved baking tasty treats with Phillip, building elaborate Brio rail lines with Julian, and watching Emmett giggle and explore, and watching all three boys have many tea parties at her house. No matter how poorly she was feeling, the answer to “Nene, will you read me this book?” was always “yes!”

Susan found joy throughout her life in learning about and tracking down her ancestors and sharing their stories. She found joy and freedom loading us and our grandma into the car for wild road trips, including driving to and from Carlsbad Caverns in a 3 day weekend, and a trip to Mt Rushmore that culminated in “look out the window, there’s Mt Rushmore!” as she kept on driving. She found joy in her Thursday painting group. She found joy in the right shade of red, especially on cars. She found joy in teapots and having the right set of dishes for every occasion. She found joy in creating art. She found joy in helping others. She found joy in her growing pride of her son-in-law, Ryan, who she agreed (but not before having years of doubt) had become worthy of her daughter just as he promised her he would. She found joy amongst her plants and working in her yard. She found joy in her many cats over the years, but Grey Baby and Boogie Woogie were the ones she talked about the most.

She prioritized what truly brings us joy in this life.

We could always come to her with a project and together we'd walk through the problem and then she would produce just the right tool or material from some magic corner in her house to get the job done. She inherited the Hunt brain and hands that can understand and fix just about anything, which came in very handy as a thrifty, single mom.

She was strong and independent and sure of herself, sometimes to a fault. She always held off asking for help, often far beyond when we thought she should. Her life has been filled with trials, but she did not let them make her hard. Watching as she has discovered the power in letting others serve and help her these last years has been a beautiful example to us. There are too many of you to name (we'd be here all day naming everyone of the Quail Hollow Ward alone), but know she loved and appreciated each and every one of you by name to us.

She has taught us so, so much, but the greatest is her example of faith. Faith in good things to come. Faith in the power of joy and gratitude. Faith in Jesus Christ. All the way through even her last day she said “I just want to do what Heavenly Father wants me to do.” And she has.

Momma, we'll love you forever, we'll like you for always, as long as forever, our Mother you'll be.

Susan is survived by her daughter, Cassandra (Ryan) Colvin, her son, Zachary Manes. Her grandsons: Phillip, Julian, and Emmett Colvin. Her father, Bob Hunt. Her sister, Lori (Bleu) Harper, and her brother, Gary (Penny) Hunt. Her nieces and nephews, aunts, cousins, and so, so many cherished friends. She was preceded by her mom, beloved grandparents, aunt and uncles.

The family would like to thank the team at Utah Cancer Specialists for their care and concern for her over these past 6 years. And for all the other doctors, nurses and staff who have been helpers in rewarding her 19 years of faith and strength.

Friends are invited to greet the family during a visitation on Thursday, December 4th from 2:00 to 3:00 PM, followed by the funeral services at 3:00 PM at the Quail Hollow Ward, 9245 Quail Run Drive, Sandy. Graveside services will be held on Friday, December 5th at 12:00 PM at the Maeser Fairview Cemetery in Vernal, Utah.