Sue James Painter, 94, passed away peacefully on Tuesday, November 8, 2022. A native of Arkansas, Sue had been a Surry County resident for many years and spent the last eight years of her life at The Arbors in Newport News, Virginia.

Sue was preceded in death by her husband of over 60 years, Oren France Painter, and their oldest son Bryan Painter. Survivors include two sons, Steven Painter and his wife Jean of Quinton, VA, and Patrick Painter and his wife Charmaine of Applethorpe, Queensland, Australia; four grandchildren, Katherine Painter of Mount Pleasant, South Carolina, William Painter (Ashley) of Port Orchard, Washington, Molly Speechley of Queensland, Australia, Jack Speechley (Louise) of Queensland, Australia; and three great-grandchildren, Grayson Painter, Billy and Carter Speechley.

Always the life of the party, Sue loved people and made friends wherever she went. After Oren's retirement, Sue and Oren traveled extensively, enjoying multiple trips to the Bahamas in their sailboat Godspeed, travels to Europe and Australia, and vacationing throughout the United States.

Sue's family would like to acknowledge her many special friends and the wonderful staff at The Arbors, who Sue thought of as family. We'd also like to express our heartfelt gratitude to her wonderful caregivers Tyrae, Sandi and Joann, and her hospice care team, for their loving care and compassion.

A reception will be held from 3PM to 5PM on Sunday, November 20th at The Arbors, 1100 William Styron Square South, Newport News, VA 23606. A private service will be held at a later date.

In lieu of flowers, please consider a donation to the Foundation for Sarcoidosis Research (FSR), 320 W Ohio St., Suite 300, Chicago, IL 60654.