It is with great sadness that we announce Susan Phillips Boston, 65, of New Canaan, Connecticut, passed away in her home on Thursday, March 26th, after a hard-fought battle against cancer.
Susan Boston
She was a cherished mother, wife, sister, grandmother and friend, and her presence will be deeply missed.
Susan was a proud lifelong New Canaanite. She spent her childhood dancing & teaching Walter Schalk, cheerleading for the Rams, managing the boys’ soccer and lacrosse teams, volunteering as advertising editor for the school yearbook and secretary for the student council. During her high school years she was awarded the “Good Citizen Award” by the Hannah Benedict Chapter of the Daughters of the American Revolution – a chapter for which she would later become Regent.
Susan spent her summers at her parents’ house in Amagansett, Long Island, where she found one of her true loves, the beach. This was a love she carried with her the rest of her life – as she always said the water was her happy place.
Susan attended St. Agnes Scott College and later transferred to and graduated from Bucknell University. In 1983, Susan began her career as a municipal bond trader at Merrill Lynch in New York City, where she was one of only a few female bond traders on the floor at the time. Susan was a powerhouse. It was at that job where she later met the love of her life, Loren Boston. Susan’s commitment to service was a defining part of who she was. Over the years, through volunteering with Girl Scouts, National Charity League, DAR, and the food pantry, Susan gave her time, energy, and compassion to countless individuals and causes. She deeply believed in lifting others up and made a lasting impact on her community through quiet, selfless acts of kindness.
As an adult, Susan received countless recognitions for her service, including the Community Service Award from the Daughters of the American Revolution, Outstanding Volunteer Award from the Girl Scouts of America, and the Patroness Service Award from the National Charity League for the most hours of philanthropic work (twice!). Susan was programs co-chair for the Newcomers Club in New Canaan, Board Member for the school Parent-Faculty Association and Volunteer Coordinator for the Veterans of Foreign Wars.
Her service continued throughout her life, as she served as the St. Mark’s May Fair Strawberry Shortcake Chair for 12 years and on several boards, including the New Canaan Food Pantry, the A Better Chance Foundation, National Charity League & the New Canaan Community Foundation. In 2007, Susan and her husband, Loren, created the “Jack Jacobs Congressional Medal of Honor for Citizenship” fund, honoring a student each year for their selfless leadership and service to their community and country.
Susan was known by all who met her as kind, giving, funny, and incredibly generous. She had a natural ability to make others feel welcome and cared for, and she dedicated much of her life to helping those around her. She quickly made friends with everyone she met; from the kind folks at the New Canaan Post Office to the FedEx delivery driver who frequented our street, she greeted everyone with respect and generosity. When the kids got older and stopped accompanying her on grocery store trips, Susan was known for carrying around Stew Leonard’s receipts in her purse so that when she next went to the store, she could give a few away to young moms and their kids in exchange for free ice cream cones.
Above all, Susan was a devoted mother, whose love and guidance shaped the lives of her four children and her entire extended family. Woven between all her volunteer work, she prioritized the needs of her family and friends. Susan was known around town for shuttling the kids to and from soccer games, early-morning ice skating practices, and Walter Schalk dance lessons in her double-Thule Suburban. Her warmth, humor, and unwavering support will be profoundly missed but forever remembered.
Susan Phillips Boston leaves behind a family who will carry forward her spirit of generosity and care, as well as many friends and community members whose lives she touched. Susan is preceded in death by her parents, Molly & John Burnap, and her daughter, Morgan Hickman Boston. She is survived by her husband, Loren Boston and their three other children: Alex (Vera) Boston, Tyler (John) de Bruycker and Sydney Boston (soon to marry Andrew Repisky). She also leaves behind three beautiful grandsons whom she adored: Theodore Lawrence, Henry Owen & Charles Morgan.
Her life was a testament to the power of kindness and service, and her legacy will live on in all who knew and loved her. In lieu of flowers, please consider a donation to Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Research by adding to her daughter Morgan’s memorial fund.
A memorial service will be held at 11 a.m. on Saturday, April 11, at St. Mark’s Episcopal Church, followed by a reception in Morrill Hall.
This is heartbreaking news. Susan was one of the first people we met when we moved to New Canaan, and her welcoming and hilarious conversation kept us coming back to the Linen Shop again and again. When we’d see her around town it was a joy to catch up with her, always with a laugh and twinkle in her eye. And a random request she made asking me to help play chauffeur to some members of DAR for the annual Memorial
Day parade became a personal highlight as i marveled at the stories about New Canaan my honored passengers would tell as we passed by notable houses, intersections and buildings of Main Street. I’m so saddened I won’t get to swap stories with her again at Walter Stewart’s, the 4th fireworks or any other community event I always hoped she’d be at. Condolences and sympathies to her family.
She was simply the best – a wonderful person! I feel lucky to have had her as a friend my whole life!
I knew Susan thru the Linen Shop and DAR. She was a kind and loving friend.
Loren
I was so sorry to hear of Susan’s passing .
While expected these are certainly beyond
beyond challenging times . Easier said then done but try and cerebrate the many
great family memories you guys have shared
together !!
My thoughts and prayers are with you all.
One of these days I will reach out and we will get together and reminisce. Please take care of
yourself . I am sure Susan wants you all celebrating her life and times together!
Like I said easier said then done
Take care
Karl
Susan was a bubble and a jewel and she will be missed terribly.
Sending my deepest condolences to Loren & family. Susan was a powerhouse being active then regent of DAR where I worked along side. She is greatly missed by many in our hometown.Be at peace.
Loren, I trust you will remember me, though it has been way too long. I just learned not only of Susan’s passing but of Morgan’s. So much heartache – I am so so sorry. Susan was a gorgeous human being – we were in Italy together in college and traveled to Greece together and stayed close for many years, attending each other’s weddings, playdates with each other’s beautiful children etc. Eventually, life got in the way, which I now regret. My heart is full for you. With deep condolences, Anne (Hartog) Stark
Dear Loren, Alex, Tyler, and Sydney, on this side of Heaven,
I am shocked to have run across Susan/your Mom’s passing.
What a woman, so similar to her Mom
..strong, kind, caring and could and would have carried any challenge to benefit the whole community.
My heart is heavy for each of you, especially Sydney. May your upcoming wedding be all you dreamed it would be as well as your Mom’s wishes and love for you. I am sure her love and lively personality will be upon your special day as well as days and years to come.
Peace of the Lord Boston family, with humble gratitude of your Mom and all of her goodness she shared, Debbie Coleman Stoltze
My strongest memory of Susan – among many – was her annual spot at the Strawberry shortcake table where she would tease my husband Cam Hutchins for yet another of his many trips through the line for more. I like to think of the two of them in Heaven enjoying their stories about the New Canaan community that raised them and that they loved so much. Susan’s light is so bright that I am confident it will continue to shine on her loved ones as long as they live.
Susan was a wonderful woman, volunteered widely in New Canaan. The class of 1978 at New Canaan high school lost her and Jackie Pask, another lovely giver of talents and service in her family and in the community. My condolences to their families.