Sue Zelickson

Sue Zelickson was small in stature but impossible to overlook. She left a lasting impression, not only on her hundreds of friends, but on the Twin Cities. She had a heart so large that the only thing to rival it will be the hole she leaves in ours.

Born on September 13, 1934, Sue Zelickson (Zipperman) was a beloved wife, mother, grandmother, great grandmother, mentor, friend, broadcaster, author, philanthropist, and an influential voice in Minnesota’s food and hospitality scene. She passed away peacefully on August 7th at the age of 91 surrounded by her loved ones. Sue was preceded in death by her devoted husband, Dr. Alvin (Al) Zelickson and loving parents, Harry and Berniece (Gross) Zipperman.

Raised in South Minneapolis, the daughter of a neighborhood pharmacist, Sue was born a firecracker. At Washburn High School, she was the only cheerleader who couldn’t do the splits. But her athletic ineptitude didn’t dampen her charm; she filled her early days with romance, leaving behind seven meticulous Date Books, which detail her over 1,500 dates. The final section of each diary is titled “dates refused,” and it was there she faithfully cataloged the invitations she declined— often because she was already out with someone else.

The man who appeared the most in these pages was Al Zelickson, her friend turned boyfriend turned husband of 60-plus years.

After the pair married, Sue began her career as a teacher. Al affectionately dubbed her “Teach,” writing in one of the many, many love letters he sent during his medical training, “... if my grandchildren are reading this I hope they know their granny is perfection and I love her beyond imaginability.”

Later, while raising her two sons, Sue was drawn to the local food scene— a pull that would define the rest of her life as a foodie.

She began her broadcasting career in the 1970s, and was a host of Food for Thought, on WCCO-AM radio for more than 40 years. Her reporting earned wide recognition, including the prestigious James Beard Award for Best Local Radio Show.

She befriended chefs from around the country. She milked a cow alongside Julia Child— an afternoon Julia herself later called the best day of her life. She spent twelve years as a columnist and contributing editor for Mpls/St Paul Magazine, then became the columnist of “Sue Z’s Finds,” for Minnesota Monthly Magazine.

No one had a worse case of FOMO (fear of missing out) than Sue. She drew her energy from being with other people. She left home early for board meetings, volunteer opportunities, and interviews, then spent the evenings at restaurant openings and birthday parties, staying out long after her husband and family had called it a night.

And she was hard to miss. Though each year seemed to shave an inch off her stature, she dressed like she ate: indulgently. She paired chic, modern outfits with eccentric accessories (think: seventy silver bangles, pendant necklaces with jangling spoons and homemade jewelry from her grandchildren), and of course, her signature round eyeglasses, a pair to match every outfit!

Sue had high standards for those she loved, and took many under her wing. In 1993, she founded Women Who Really Cook, a networking organization that has supported generations of women building careers in the food and hospitality industry. Another organization Sue founded was Perspectives Kids Cafe, a cooking program for at-risk youth and families, which grew from a single site at the Boys & Girls Club to multiple locations serving hundreds of meals a week.

For more than five decades, Sue helped shape Minnesota’s culinary landscape. It would take too much ink to list all her culinary and philanthropic achievements, and as everyone knows, that’s not what makes a person, or a life.
As much as Sue enjoyed a mouth-watering meal, the truth was that she enjoyed the side effects of eating together more— conversation, family, and community. We think the ingredient to her success was her life force, her gravitational pull. It was undeniable: You wanted to be in the room with Sue.

Sue was not one of those “grow old gracefully types.” Throughout her seventies and eighties, Sue’s calendar remained packed. She continued judging cooking competitions, accepting speaking engagements, traveling, writing, and trying every new restaurant with her family. She spent her ninetieth birthday in a pink cowboy hat in Nashville with her grandchildren, eating barbecue and sipping beer at honky tonk bars.

The truth is, we don’t know anyone who loved living so much and did it so well. We will miss her forever and know we are not alone.
Sue is survived by her sons, Barry (Lisa), Dr. Brian (Mary McCarthy); grandchildren, Zachary (Molly), Nicole Timm (Alex), Eve, Arlo; and great grandchildren, Elizabeth and Greyson; her sister, Connie (Dr Myron) Samovitz; brother-in-law, Elliot Wolson; cousin, Hal Gross and many nieces, nephews and friends. Our family is endlessly thankful to Sue’s care team for their compassion and support.
A private family service and interment will be held, no Shiva. In lieu of flowers, the family requests memorials be made to the donors’ choice, the Cookie Cart, an organization dedicated to helping young people discover opportunities through food and education, The American Cancer Society, or Second Harvest Heartland, an emergency food bank serving Minnesota families.