Funeral Details

Dr. Drew Robert Suss, 78, died in his sleep on February 10, 2025 at his home in Deerfield, Illinois.
Born September 11, 1946 in the Bronx to Winifred and Lester Suss, Drew retained both the humor and patience of a New Yorker despite moving away at age 18. A lifelong learner, Drew collected various degrees from around the country, including two BAs, a masters degree, and a PhD. He worked as a writer and editor across the country, ultimately landing in Los Angeles, Calif. where he would meet his wife of 35 years, Renee. An otherwise notable wordsmith, Drew approached Renee with the line, “Does the bus stop here?” She elected to fall in love with him anyway.
Drew and Renee left sunshine and Hollywood behind when they moved to Deerfield in 1992 with their daughter, Jessica. Drew began a fruitful consulting and coaching career he would continue until his death. In his spare time, he coached Jessica through a variety of high school speechwriting engagements and line-edited her essays for English with a sharp eye for clutter and bluster.
Drew loved growing tomatoes (although with varying degrees of success), Jewish humor (notably excluding Seinfeld), woodworking projects, birdwatching, looking through (but rarely cooking from) cookbooks, making his daughter look up words in the dictionary, asking Siri questions she could not possibly answer, attending (and sometimes sleeping through) classical music concerts with his wife, and watching the Bears win.
Described by all who knew him as a character, Drew was known for his keen sense of humor, his distaste for nonsense, and his belief in doing what he called “the next right thing.” While he might have exasperated waitstaff, he was a man who knew what he wanted – and that was for his steak to be a true medium rare.
Drew is survived by his wife Renee Suss, his daughter Jessica Morrison (Thomas), his granddaughter Talia Morrison, and his brothers Charles (Kate Balassie) and David Suss.
A memorial service will be held at Temple Beth-El in Northbrook on Monday, February 17 at 2:30 pm. To attend the funeral via livestream, please see the link on this page. Shiva will be observed at the Suss residence from 5PM-8PM. Donations in his name can be made out to North Chicago Community Partners. He will be loved and missed.
Arrangements by Chicago Jewish Funerals-Skokie Chapel, 847.229.8822, www.cjfinfo.com