COLLINS, Susie Lee

Photos Courtesy of California Historical Society, MSP 3800

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Last Name
 
COLLINS
Given Names
 
Susie (Lee)
AKA's
 
Better known as
 
Date of Birth
 
7/20/1900
Age at Death
 
78
Place of Birth
 
Harrison County, Texas
Race
 
Black
Gender
 
Female
Religion
 
Family Tree
 
Birth Mother
 
Birth Father
 
Siblings
 
Partner
 
Children
 
Non-Temple Relatives
 
(parents) Silas Lee, Elizabeth Lee; (brother) Walter Lee; (husband) Rueban Collins
Body Identification Number
 
Burial Location
 
Remains claimed by next of kin; burial location unknown
Source of Death Information
 
House Foreign Affairs Committee report; FBI document 89-4286-1302 (prepared 12/78)
Entry into Guyana
 
8/14/1977
Residence (US)
 
Los Angeles, California 90011
Residence (JT)
 
Cottage 05
Occupation in U.S./Skills, Talents & Interests
 
Houseworker (RYMUR 89-4286-X-5-a-26f); retired
Occupation in Jonestown (Temple Records)
 
(senior); Laundry (RYMUR 89-4286-E-2-A-1ffff)
Jonestown Roles (FBI Records)
 
Government Income
 
SSA (JT), SSI
Discrepancies
 
Remembrances
 
“Grandmother I'm hurt to know that you had to endure anything that was not of your desire. I know that you were strong. Now with the sharing of Ms. Kathryn Barbour I can get closure to alot of my questions. I rejoice in getting this information but saddened that your daughters are not here. I imagine that you got to share with them yourself. REST IN ETERNAL PEACE Love Brendan's ” - Brenda Mathews

“Dear Susie Collins was as sweet and gentle a grandmother as could be imagined, who I remember seeing in the congregation for many years. Did she have family members in Jonestown with her? She was one of our singles, and is supposedly the sister of WilleAter "Willie" Thomas, a high school student, but the difference between their ages (60 years) makes that unlikely. So the search goes on for others who may have been related to her, among those who died. In Jonestown, Susie worked in the laundry. There might have been machines. Edith Roller writes often of having to borrow a tub to do her laundry. Possibly the laundry handled clothing for the seniors, clinic and the nursery, and for those who couldn't wash their own clothes due to mobility or other issues, but that's a guess. I know there were not that many laundry workers, so maybe they did have some machines. Additionally, shortages of everything, including clothing, meant many did their own laundry so that they could keep close tabs on their clothes. That Susie showed grace and forbearance under the pressure I don't doubt. I'm sure she did her best to raise spirits of those around her, and protect them when she could. Her entrapment, trafficking, betrayal and untimely end are a never-ending pain. May she forever Rest in Peace, with the angels, in eternal love. ” - Kathryn Barbour

“Susie I guess it has been 40 years. You left us almost 50 years ago but I remember you as if it were yesterday. I remember you sitting in your room watching Oral Roberts. I remember running home from school to tell you JFK had died to find you crying in a pool of tissue paper. I remember the fort you built for me and how to cook eggs. I still cook them the same way. I also remember the willow switches you kept behind the door and pretended to hit us with. Most of all I remember you as my mother, my big sister and my best friend. Everything I have become in life was a result of the loving and caring nature that you always showed us. People ask me one in a while are you more like your mother or your father. I would like to think that I am more like you. You are one of my strongest and fondest memories of my youth. I will always love that you were part of my life and I will always remember you....all my love” - charles k hoffman

Susie Lee Collins: My Story of Her Story” - Kurt Hoffman