Suzanne Gardner Clothier

1920 - 2017

NEW CITY, N.Y. - Suzanne Gardner Hitchcock Clothier, 97, a long time resident of Sussex and Warren counties, passed away on Dec. 11.
Suzanne was born on July 4, 1920, in Chestnut Hill, Pa., to the late Louise Gardner and Milville Espe Hitchcock. Suzanne's father was a teacher at the Chestnut Hill Academy. They moved to Ville-d'Avray, France, where her father started a school for American boys. Due to the Great Depression of 1929, they moved back to America where her father took a position as head of the French and Spanish Department at Deerfield Academy in Deerfield, Mass.
Suzanne attended the Bement School in Deerfield, Mass., the Stoneleigh Prospect Hill School in Greenfield, Mass., and received a BFA degree at Yale University in 1944. While at Yale, she met her husband, Robert Lee Clothier Jr. Robert graduated from Yale with an architectural degree as an ensign in the Navy V12 college program.
Suzanne and Robert were married in 1944. They then went to the Naval Academy in Fort Pierce, Fla., where Robert became a "Scout and Raider," the Navy's first special warfare commandos. After the end of World War II, they moved to Sparta.
Suzanne and Bob were both active in local affairs and raised their children. In 1954, Suzanne opened the first Visiting Homemaker Service in Warren County, and was on the first environmental commission in Frelinghuysen Township. Suzanne was a wonderful painter and many bought her artwork. Many loved her and all will miss her.
Suzanne is survived by three children, her daughter, Sandra Hitchcock Mende; sons, Robert Lee Clothier III and Michael Espe Clothier; and four grandchildren, Espe, Cai, Julie and Michael.
The last few years of Suzanne's life were spent with her daughter, Sandra, in New City, N.Y. A celebration of her life will be held in the spring of 2018, details to be announced.