Susan is a 4th-generation Montanan, “displaced” due to schooling in Oregon at Willamette University, followed by stints in California and Wisconsin, with a permanent landing in Washington. Her family lives a few miles down-lake from Holden, in sunny Wenatchee. Susan's husband, Paul, is a physician, and she is a biologist and science educator, implementing outdoor education programs for the school district. Being part of the Holden community has been an important growing-up summer tradition for her three children. The Ballinger family's most favorite activities are winter-time cross-country skiing and summer-time mountain biking in the foothills of the Cascades. For fun, Susan likes to play her flute at church and in local musical productions.