Margit Szucs
MARGIT SZUCS, of Bellevue, WA, died August 10, 2015, age 85. Margit came to the U.S. in 1956 at the time of the Hungarian Revolution against the Russians. She and her husband George, and two young children fled the violence, fires, and political oppression of the Communists and came to this country seeking freedom and a place to be safe to start over. Red Cross evacuation flights took them to New York at first and in 1958 they resettled in Washington state, ending up in the Bellevue area in 1960. George was a beloved family medical doctor serving Bellevue patients until around 1990 when he retired.
Margit was a homemaker raising her two little girls, and then having a third little girl, until her late 30-s.
Then Margit discovered herself, and art discovered Margit in her 40-s. What started as a way to dabble and play with her youngest, turned into a hobby, then an obsession, and finally a finely-trained profession. Margit went back to college, finished a B.A. and then earned a Masters in Art from the University of Washington in 1982. She displayed and sold her fine art through several high-end galleries in Seattle and Bellevue and was a favorite artist for several Street of Dreams mansions. Her work was found in banks and hotels, as well as fine homes big and small from Anchorage to Vancouver B.C., to Seattle, to Portland, and down in Carmel, CA. She had a booth of honor for over a decade at the juried Bellevue Art Show where thousands got to see her work and visit with her.
Margit and George loved to entertain in their home and often had artist friends, medical friends, and old Hungarian friends mix together eating great home-cooked food, drinking warm spirits, and laughing into the night. Margit loved to garden and swim in her pool, soaking up a warm tan. When grandchildren came along, she would kidnap them for a weekend or a week and totally spoil them with fabulous baked yummies, lots of splashing in the pool, and fun times finger painting and creating art “masterpieces” with them. These are memories the grandchildren even now, as adults, cherish.
Severe, soul-robbing depression prevented Margit from enjoying her last ten years of life, but she was loved and protected through her medical struggles by her husband of 62 years, Dr. George Szucs, as well as her daughters and close, dear friends. After her husband’s death three years ago, Margit moved closer to her daughter Eva and grandchildren in Coeur d’Alene, ID. Daughters Zsuzsa and Lita were frequent visitors to her in Idaho. Holding and visiting with grandchildren and young great-grandchildren would bring the shiny spark of delight back to her face when nothing else seemed to matter. It was a joy to behold! Margit is survived by daughters Eva Carleton, of Spokane, WA; Zsuzsa Blaine, of Bellingham, WA; and Tereza (Lita) Szucs, of Gig Harbor, WA. She has 6 grandchildren and 10 great-grandchildren.
May you finally rest in peace, beloved mother, grandmother, great-grandmother; we shall miss you! Margit and husband George shall be interred in the family crypt in Dunaszentgyorgy, Hungary. They loved the United States and were grateful for their comfortable and happy years here, but shall spend their eternity in their beloved Hungary. Notes to the family from friends — especially with stories of Margit and George — are welcomed and should be sent c/o Eva Carleton, 3103 S. High Dr., Spokane, WA 99203.
