Virginia "Ginny" Hurst Sugg

Virginia Hurst Sugg died peacefully on Monday, October 14, 2024, likely from a stroke followed by cardiac arrest. Even though Alzheimer’s had started its long goodbye several years earlier, she was her sweet self to the end and has joined the Church Triumphant. Her life of loving, cheerful service is an example her family and friends are inspired to emulate. Not only did her family love her dearly, so did many, many friends. She was a faithful Christian who always wanted to share God’s love—especially with children, in her family, and in service through Presbyterian churches. 

Born Mary Virginia in Greenville, GA on October 30, 1932 to Arvil and Ruth Hurst, the family soon moved to Columbus, GA where her father opened his dental practice. In her teens, she would assist him there. Known to many as Ginny, her family and childhood friends knew her as Tweet, a nickname given to her as a baby by her grandmother. “Mama York” had had a stroke and could not pronounce S’es and said of little Mary Virginia, “tee’s toe tweet!” This sweetness and bright spirit were to characterize Tweet’s life of almost 92 years. She was affable without calling attention to herself and was a great big sister to her late brother George “Bubber” Hurst and late sister Pat Jordan. 

Her charm, humor, and good-natured spirit earned the senior superlative of most popular at her beloved Columbus High School. It was at high school and First Presbyterian Church, Columbus, that she met the love of her life, Dick Sugg. When he died in April of 2023, they had been married almost 69 years. People often remarked at what a gorgeous couple they made—Ginny with movie star looks like Debbie Reynolds and Dick like Rock Hudson.  Many others have shared that Ginny was beautiful inside and out.

Perhaps because Dick was so accomplished, Ginny did not always see herself as intelligent as she really was. She had the courage to transfer from Huntington College in Alabama after two years to go “up north” to Richmond, VA to the Assembly Training School for Lay Workers (later called Presbyterian School of Christian Education now part of Union Presbyterian Seminary.) There she made some lifelong friends, and she was inspired by faculty like Rachel Henderlite (who, 12 years later was the first woman ordained as a minister in the “southern” Presbyterian Church). 

Graduating at 20 years old with an undergraduate degree in Religious Education from “ATS” in 1953, Ginny served as Director of Religious Education at First Presbyterian Church in Florence, Alabama until she married Dick soon after he graduated from West Point. She chose a life of adventure and some challenges when she married an Army officer. Their life together saw many moves, living in different parts of the United States and assignments in Germany and Australia. Son Richard was born in Georgia, daughter Jennifer in Germany, and daughter Laura in California.

Ginny always found a way to make wherever the family lived home, especially as a skilled seamstress making curtains for many rooms and clothes for herself and her daughters. Dick was gone serving two separate year-long tours in Viet Nam. In 1972, the Sugg family returned from Australia to settle in Alexandria, VA. In 1997, Dick and Ginny moved to Golden, CO. Latterly, they lived in retirement communities in southeast Denver.

Ginny would go on to be active in Presbyterian congregations everywhere they lived, including serving as deacon and elder at the Old Presbyterian Meeting House in Alexandria, VA and at Montview Boulevard Presbyterian Church in Denver, CO. She also served on National Capital Presbytery’s Committee on Preparation for Ministry.  Son Richard H. Sugg, Jr. and daughters Jennifer Bircher and Laura Sugg saw in their mother someone whose love was unconditional and steadfast—like the God Ginny followed. They have all followed in her footsteps serving as leaders in their congregations. Her nieces, nephews, grandchildren and great-grandchildren knew in Ginny someone willing to be goofy, to laugh with them, buy them little treasures, and most of all, to love them no matter what. 

Ginny was always looking for ways to serve. A generation of Alexandria’s Old Presbyterian Meeting House third graders learned a lot in her Sunday school classes as did children who toured the old schoolhouse at the Golden History Park where she was a docent for about 15 years. Mission trips, session meetings, chairing the church Personnel Committee, serving on a board—she was ready to serve as the Spirit led. Her groups of friends were blessed with her commitment to hospitality and togetherness—whether it was the dinner and bridge group that for met for about 20 years, friends made through the Army and time in Australia, the “Golden sisterhood,” or Montview’s Westside Fellowship.

She is survived by a family who misses her and yet rejoices that she is free of the bonds of Alzheimer’s and rests in the arms of the God she loved in life: son, Richard H. Sugg, Jr. (of Littleton) and Richard’s wife Tammy and their son Colin; daughter Jennifer Bircher (of Denver) and her children, Bailey Lardes (Doug) and Will Bircher (Morgan); daughter Laura Sugg (of Charlottesville, VA) and her daughter Willow (aka Naomi); Ginny’s great-grandchildren, Piper and Nixon Lardes, and Rowyn Bircher; and nieces and nephews.

Ginny’s memorial service, followed by a light reception will be held on 

FRIDAY, NOV. 1 (All Saints’ Day) 

4:00 PM (Mountain Time)

Wellshire Presbyterian Church, 2999, S. Colorado Blvd. Denver CO 80222

The service will also be available to live stream via the Wellshire YouTube page. The live stream will be start by 3:45 PM (MT).  If you do not see it by 3:45 PM, search “Sugg”

LIVE STREAM LINK: https://www.youtube.com/@WellshirePresbyterianChurch/streams

In lieu of flowers, please consider donating to one of these two organizations dear to Ginny:  Golden History Museum and Park (Formerly, Clear Creek History Park where Ginny volunteered many years.) https://www.goldenhistory.org/visit/history-park/ or Union Presbyterian Seminary for Christian Education programs. (UPSem. is the successor institution of higher learning where Ginny graduated from the Assembly Training School for Lay Workers that then became PSCE -- the Presbyterian School of Christian Education. https://www.upsem.edu