It is with great sadness that we share that Mrs. Suzanne “Sue” Hawes has passed away Friday July 2nd.  

Services will be held at Muhleisen Funeral Home at 2607 Williams Boulevard, in Kenner on Saturday, July 10, 2010. Visitation will be from 3:30 pm to 5:30 pm, followed by a funeral from 5:30 pm to 6:30 pm. There will be a reception dinner at the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints, located at 5025 Cleveland Place, Metairie, Louisiana.

Sue's family requests that donations be made to the Coalition to Restore Coastal Louisiana in lieu of flowers. Cards can be sent to Sue's family in care of her son-in-law David Van Dam, 1215 Prytania Street, Suite 325, New Orleans, Louisiana 70130.

Mrs. Suzanne "Sue" Hawes began working at the Corps of Engineers on March 1, 1972 as an intern and became a full-time Environmental Resources Specialist in November 1973.  

Over her 38 year career, Sue earned the highest respect and admiration from a diversity of groups, including federal and state resource agencies, local governments, commercial fisherman, oil and gas representatives, land managers, and other interests throughout Louisiana and the nation. Sue's unyielding expert understanding, professionalism, fairness, openness, clarity of thinking, and commitment to environmental protection and restoration gained her the unique role as the Corps Project Manager for the Environment over the past 20 years, wherein she has been responsible for fostering trusting and professional working relationships between the Corps and these public and private groups. 

Sue contributed significantly to the public's understanding of the importance and value of Louisiana's coastal wetlands and was frequently referred by many as the Corps environmental guru. Her efforts over the years led to increased efficiency in project planning through improved interaction and multi-agency coordination.

She has been key to increasing awareness of environmental issues within the New Orleans District and integrating appropriate and important environmental features into projects. In the 1980s, Sue participated on teams to develop the environmental plan for the Atchafalaya Basin and helped craft the land use compromise. She initiated a lasting cooperative relationship between the Corps of Engineers and the U.S Fish and Wildlife Service enabling our agencies to jointly implement environmental features into projects.  
 
Sue leaves behind a legacy in the enumerable individuals she mentored, inspired and influenced and in the contributions to many important efforts she made over her career, including:  

    Sue was the Chief of the Corps of Engineers, New Orleans District Environmental Section from 1978 until 1990.

     In 1990, she was uniquely assigned as the New Orleans District Project Manager for the Environment. In this role, Sue was integrally involved in all aspects of coastal restoration and was responsible for establishing a bridge to the environmental community - federal and state agencies and environmental groups such as the Sierra Club, the Louisiana Wildlife Federation, Audubon Society, Coalition to Restore Coastal Louisiana, and the Lake Pontchartrain Basin Foundation.

    During the last 10 years she served in the Scientific Technical Committee of the Barataria-Terrebonne National Estuary Program and was designated reviewer of the "Status and Trends of Hydrologic Modification, Reduction in Sediment Availability and Habitat Loss/Modification in the BT Estuary System." She was also "basin captain" for the Pontchartrain Basin and "coastal admiral" during preparation of the 1993 CWPPRA Restoration Plan. Ms. Hawes participated heavily in the Breaux Act priority list process, was member of the Environmental Work Group and participated in Wetland Value Assessments. She was one of several authors of the Coast 2050 Plan, served as regional team leader in Region 2, was heavily involved in developing work
plans for the Sudden Marsh Dieback Syndrome (known as Brown Marsh) and served as vice chairman of the resurrected BTNEP Scientific Technical Committee. 

    She also served a trustee involved in the Bayou Trepagnier Remediation process, was a member of the Coastal Restoration Interagency Team and helped develop, write and edit the Louisiana Coastal Area Ecosystem Restoration Study. She served on interagency team that developed Lake Pontchartrain Basin Foundation Comprehensive Restoration Plan and was also on the team that developed the Integrated Final Report and LEIS for the MRGO Deep Draft De-Authorization Study.

    Sue's energy, motivation, integrity, and intellect continued until her end -some say she could mentally run circles around the best of us even on her worst day. She will be sorely missed by the many who valued her friendship and intellect.

For additional informaiton contact:
Melanie Goodman
CWPPRA Program Manager
US Army Corps of Engineers
New Orleans District
Restoration Branch

Office: 504-862-1940
FAX: 504-862-1892