JoAnn "Susie" Lanter

JoAnn “Susie“ Lanter of Inverness, Florida passed away February 15, 2026.

Susie was born November 7, 1937 in Belleville, Illinois to her parents, the late Edward Lanter and Cleopha Diekroetger Lanter. She was the youngest of their six children.

Susie graduated from Notre Dame Academy in Belleville in 1955 and went onto nursing school at Depaul Nursing School in St. Louis, Missouri, and earned her nursing degree in 1958. Shortly thereafter she joined the United States Air Force as a nurse and achieved the rank of captain. After her service in the Air Force, and with the aid of the G.I. Bill, Susie completed training as a nurse anesthetist, a career she pursued until her retirement in 2012.

In 1982 Susie and her lifelong friend, Lt. Colonel Bonita Nord, USAF (ret.) moved to Inverness

She is predeceased by her parents and her siblings and by Col. Nord. She is survived by 15 nieces and nephews, and her dear friend Sandy Coker, all of whom she loved dearly, and she was loved by all of them.

A Mass of Christian Burial will be held at 11:00 AM on Wednesday, March 11, 2026, at Our Lady of Fatima Catholic Church in Inverness. Susie will be laid to rest privately at Florida National Cemetery, Bushnell, FL. 

Heinz Funeral Home, www.heinzfh.com.