Elisabeth Sue McHam è nata il 23 febbraio del 1920 a Wichita Falls, capoluogo dell'omonima contea situato circa 220Km a Nord Ovest di Dallas ed è stata l'editrice del Bridge Bulletin della ACBL per oltre un quarto di secolo.

 Laureatasi alla Harding University di Searcy (Arkansas), insegnò e si sposò una prima volta in quello stato con H.B. Camp da cui divorziò dopo essersi trasferita in Texas a metà degli anni '50.

 Lì, iniziò a praticare abitualmente il bridge e lì conobbe il secondo marito John W. Emery che era un noto Direttore di Tornei che sposò nel 1966 e che la lasciò prematuramente sei anni più tardi.

 Dopo la morte del secondo marito, Sue si trasferì a Memphis ed entrò a far parte dello staff del Bridge Bulletin e restò in ACBL fino al momento del suo pensionamento avvenuto nel 1996 a causa di un affezione agli occhi che precedette il suo ritorno alla città natia.

 Proprietaria di un Bridge Club, reporter, scrittrice, insegnante e direttrice di torneo, come giocatrice ha vinto diversi titoli regionali.

 Sue, che ha avuto tre figli dal primo matrimonio (Ann, Connie e Brit), ha presenziato ininterrottamente a 95 edizioni consecutive dei NABC's ed ha anche scritto un libro di grande successo "No Passing Fancy" sui primi 50 anni di storia della ACBL.

 Si è spenta per cause naturali nella sua casa di Wichita Falls il 20 novembre del 2010. 

Sue Emery, a Bridge Bulletin editor for nearly a quarter of a century and a fixture at NABCs for even longer, died on Nov. 20 of natural causes in Wichita Falls TX, her home since she retired from the ACBL in 1996.  She was 90. 

One of the most beloved figures at ACBL, Emery had a long and varied career in bridge.

A native of Wichita Falls, she  earned a degree in English from Harding University in Searcy AR. While working as a school teacher in that state, she met H.B. Camp, her first husband. 

They were divorced in the mid-Fifties after having moved to Texas. After returning to Texas, Emery played bridge and ran a club for a time. She met future husband Tournament Director “Big John” Emery, at a tournament. They married in 1966. Under her husband’s tutelage, Emery became a TD. The two were a well-known and popular directing team, mostly in Texas, until his unexpected death in 1972.

After her husband’s death, Emery joined the staff of the Bridge Bulletin. By the time she retired, primarily because her eyesight was affected by macular degeneration, she had attended 95 consecutive NABCs. During her time at the ACBL, she wrote No Passing Fancy, a book about the ACBL’s first 50 years.

Among Emery’s many friends and admirers are former Bridge Bulletin Editor Henry Francis and former Associate Editor Frank Stewart, whose tributes follow: Francis: “I have lost a true friend. Sue Emery was much more than my chief assistant on the Bridge Bulletin. She was my confidant, my crutch, my right hand, my shining star. Our lives were happily intermingled throughout our careers at ACBL. These are the more poignant memories I have of Sue: “Her decision to leave the directing field and become a writer after the death of her beloved husband, Big John Emery. She didn’t want to return to tournaments where all her memories of John would compound her grief. For all the Bridge Bulletin readers who were her loyal fans, this was a most happy decision. “Her victorious battle to wear pants while working at ACBL. As a result of a tournament accident, she had a scar on her leg that she did not wish to have constantly on display. Take my word for it – this was not an easy battle. The women at ACBL exalted her as a heroine.