Muriel (Sue) Mullen
A celebration of life service will be held for Muriel (Sue) Mullen, age 89, on February 7, 2025, at Southeast Church of Christ, located at 2400 West Bay Area Boulevard in Friendswood, Texas. Our beloved Sue went to be with the Lord on Tuesday, January 28th. Sue was born on February 28, 1935, in a small farmhouse in Humboldt, Iowa, the daughter of Robert and Iola Foley. As one of three girls, Sue’s childhood life consisted of housekeeping, tending to the yard, working in the fields, and gathering eggs from the hen houses. Sue had an adventurous spirit, leaving her Iowa home the day after high school graduation on a train headed for Los Angelos, CA, to join a cousin already living there. Her working life began in L.A. as a mail room worker for a metal and supply company. While working in the mail room, Sue was recruited to join a dance studio and learned the can-can, and her lifelong love of dancing began. After two years of dancing and mail room work in L.A., she decided it was time for a change, at which time she went to her grandparent’s home in Minneapolis and got a job at Standard Oil. It didn’t take long for her to meet a group of friends that suggested she join them in airline stewardess school. She jumped on the opportunity and after only one interview, landed a position with Alaska Airlines and moved to Anchorage. Her adventures continued when she and her sister Berta took a train to Miami Beach, Florida, where she got a job at a small business firm. This is where she met her first husband and he and Sue had two precious children, Debbie and Bobby. Sue lived in many U.S. states and cities from there, eventually landing in Pasadena, Texas where she worked as a secretary at USI, and met Byron Mullen through a colleague and they married in 1992. Sue and Byron shared a love for dancing and travel and had many adventures together. Sue was a passionate dancer, and enjoyed any type of dancing including clogging, line dancing, and two stepping. She was also a talented musician with a gift for playing the organ. Later in life, Sue’s time was spent on her garden, which she nurtured to grow into a beautiful display of color. You could catch her daily tending to her yard and plants, or taking special care of her kitties. Sue was deeply committed when it came to her faith in the Lord as well as taking care of and unconditionally loving her friends and family. She had a special connection with children. Be it at church, in her neighborhood, or with her family, the little ones would light up with excitement to see Grandma Sue. Sue’s legacy is one of faith, love, and genuine connection to her church, her family, and her community. Sue and Byron were an intimate part of a small group at Southeast, and developed close loving ties with each of the group’s members. Although her passing leaves a void in our lives, she will live on forever in our hearts.
She was preceded in death by her father and mother, Robert and Iola, and sisters Roberta Gales and Loana (Tootsie) Woollums.
Sue leaves behind her beloved family, husband of thirty-two years, Byron Mullen of Friendswood, Texas, daughter Debbie Terry and husband Bill of South Houston, Texas, son Bobby Garrett and wife Birgit of Van Cleave, Mississippi, grandson Michael Garrett and partner Kara Sim of Van Cleave, Mississippi, grandson Richard Terry and wife Amanda of Wyoming, Michigan, and great granddaughter Madilyn Garrett, along with her stepchildren Shalaina Mullen, Dean Mullen and partner Carrie Byrd, Trina Mullen and partner Richard Clarke, step-grandchildren Sarah Cruthirds, Bobby Cruthirds and wife Brianna, Grace Cruthirds, Marlow Mullen, Ruben Mullen, and many loving nieces and nephews.
In lieu of flowers, the family requests donations be made through Southeast Church of Christ’s giving website towards the “Feed My Starving Children” charity event linked below.