'Kind, caring' teacher

Susan P. Tomsha ~ 1946-2007

Susan Potter Tomsha loved her job as a special-education teacher at Barrington High School so much, she began the school year last month as she has for the past 29 years, despite her serious battle with cancer.

The Elgin resident taught until two weeks before the disease claimed her life. She died Thursday at age 61.

As a special-education teacher at the high school level, Mrs. Tomsha taught select content courses to her students in small groups. She gave classes in health and social interaction, as well as pre-vocational classes, colleagues say. She also checked on her students at their places of work.

"Sue enjoyed all of it, especially the interaction with her students," says Kathy Kehoe of Crystal Lake, a retired speech pathologist at Barrington High School.

"She was very kind and caring, and that lent itself beautifully to her work," Kehoe adds. "Working with special-education students takes patience and creativity, and she had plenty of both."

Mrs. Tomsha's creativity extended to her involvement with the Children's Theatre of Elgin, the 20-year company dedicated to children in first through ninth grade, where Mrs. Tomsha helped in costuming the young performers.

"She kept me focused and organized," says Fran Mitchell of Elgin, head costumer since 1999. "She knew where everything was, so she'd pull costumes and help with attaching trim. She also helped write our newsletters, so we could keep in contact with our 10 to 15 sewers."

Mrs. Tomsha grew up in Wauconda and graduated from Wauconda High School in 1964, before going on to earn her education degree and master's degree in special education at Northern Illinois University.

Her mother, LaVerne Lincoln Potter, had been a school nurse, leading Mrs. Tomsha to pursue a nursing degree from Elgin Community College.

"During the course of her studies, her mother became ill and Sue cared for her," says her friend, Fran Cella of Elgin. "She never practiced as a nurse, but she always felt her role as a caregiver to her mother, was the reason she earned her degree."

Despite earning her nursing degree, family members says Mrs. Tomsha never wavered from her love of teaching. Her genuine interest in her students extended long after they graduated, and she was took great delight when former students stayed in touch.

Mrs. Tomsha is survived by her husband, Doug, whom she met when they were undergraduates at Northern, as well as her two sons, Kyle and Sean.

Visitation for Mrs. Tomsha will take place from 5-9 p.m. today at Kisselburg-Wauconda Funeral Home, 235 N. Main St. in Wauconda, before an 11 a.m. funeral on Wednesday at Wauconda Federated Church, 200 S. Barrington Road in Wauconda.