UNION – Susan L. Sulzer, wife of Steven M. Sulzer, gifted teacher and coach, devoted volunteer, died Wednesday, Oct. 26, 2005, at her home surrounded by her family, after a courageous battle with breast cancer. She was born Oct. 17, 1940, in Presque Isle. She was the daughter of Alfred F. and Margaret E. Litz. Susan was an exceptional teacher and coach in the Camden school system and a devoted volunteer to many causes. Her father was a potato broker and sheep breeder, and it was during her childhood that Susan developed the lifelong love of animals for which she was so well known. In high school she played piano for Congregational Church in Presque Isle. She attended Colby College for two years and then transferred to the University of Maine, where she majored in English, graduating in 1963. She was instrumental in starting a student-run coffeehouse, where she also performed in folk groups on guitar and banjo. While serving as a part-time secretary at the UM art department, she met her husband-to-be, sculptor Harry Stump. She came to the midcoast area in 1963, intent on a coastal lifestyle either on an island or in the woods. After a brief stint at Ladd’s Insurance in Rockland, she landed the English teaching job on the island of Vinalhaven. She and Harry Stump were married there and stayed there until 1969, when they moved to Thomaston, so that Susan could begin her teaching career at Camden Rockport High School. In 1972, Susan moved to Warren, where she kept a donkey farm and became known as a leading New England expert on donkeys. She introduced her nephews and nieces to the joys of animals and country living. She and her first husband separated in 1978. Over a teaching career that spanned four decades, Susan became a masterful teacher. She was known for her devotion to her students, her ability to make texts accessible to all children, her humor, and the affection and scholarship that she inspired in her students. She was an English teacher and also the drama director for fourteen years, overseeing the enthusiastic production of many plays. Years later some of her former students still talk about the love for theatre that she helped them to discover. She was also coach of the girls’ tennis team from 1984-1990 and 1998-2004, including the Class B state championship team of 2003. She was widely respected as a coach. In 1985 she married another teacher at the high school, Steven Sulzer, and moved with him to their home high in the hills above Union, where they lived happily for the past twenty years, surrounded by their gardens, tennis court and their beloved family of five cats and two dogs. After retiring from teaching in 1993, Susan became a devoted volunteer and ran a healing support group for four years. Her mother’s death from cancer, inspired her to become a hospice volunteer as well as president of Kno-Wal-Lin. She served on Northeast Health Board of Directors from 1994 to 2002 and was chairman from 1999 to 2001. In the 80’s she served as a notary public and married several local couples and was the art critic for the Camden Herald. She also was a volunteer for her religion Eckankar, as well as a longtime editor of its Maine newsletter. Susan was an active athlete, playing on adult tennis teams in the area. She is survived by her husband, Steven Sulzer, of Union; her brother, Professor Richard Litz and his companion, Professor Jorge Pena, of Home-stead, Fla. and Wiscasset; her brother, Dr. Henry Litz and his wife, Marilyn, of Fort Fairfield; and her sister, Judith Boudman and her husband, Professor Clifton Boudman, of Crouseville; long-time family friend, Irene Michaud Legeux of Fort Myers, Fla.; her father- and mother-in-law, Peter and Katharine Sulzer of Snow Hill, Md.; her brother-in-law, James Sulzer and his wife, Barbara Elder of Nantucket, Mass.; and her brother-in-law, Michael Sulzer and his wife, Bernadette Balco-Sulzer, of Arecibo, Puerto Rico; and many beloved nieces and nephews. A Memorial Service will be held 2 p.m., Saturday, Nov. 19, at the Rockport Opera House followed by a reception. The family suggests memorial donations be made in Susan’s memory to Kno-Wal-Lin Hospice, 169 Pleasant St., Rockland, ME 04841. Arrangements are with the Laite Funeral Home, 9 Mountain St., Camden.
SUSAN LITZ SULZER
