Susan E. Goldin

PORTSMOUTH - Tikkun Olam is the Hebrew expression for repairing the world, and for Susan E. Goldin of Portsmouth there was no higher calling in life. Apart from her many achievements in work, Susan dedicated herself to social justice, empowering individuals and communities, and demonstrating the highest standards of personal integrity. Susan died Tuesday night, June 20, 2017, following a short illness and courageous fight against cancer. Susan Elaine Goldin was born in Providence, R.I., July 19, 1944, the daughter of Rabbi Aaron Goldin and Lillian B. (Deitch) Goldin. On her father's side, she was the direct descendent of hundreds of years of important religious leaders and scholars.

She attended Classical High School in Providence, R.I., moving with her family to Portsmouth, N.H., in 1960 and graduating from Portsmouth High School in1962. She worked summers for the Portsmouth City Recreation program as a playground director. Susan was an undergraduate in American History at Syracuse University where she created and developed the Syracuse Student Union and where among many achievements, received, upon graduation in 1966, that school's Most Outstanding Student Award. Susan did graduate work through a multiple Masters program at SUNY Albany where she received a degree in Psychology, Counseling and Public Administration. While at Albany she also served as an Assistant Dean of Residence, where she designed all the in-service training programs for the new campus.

In 1969, Susan achieved a young lifelong dream when she traveled across the country by car for a year. Upon returning to Portsmouth, she was asked to consult on revitalizing the failing Project T.R.Y. (Theatre Resources for Youth), a large-scale touring theater education program based on the UNH campus. Susan agreed to take on the project and in 1970 was appointed Director of TRY. Under her direction from 1970 to 1998, TRY initiated and produced a series of innovative educational outreach programs and professional touring companies focused as much on community building as on performance, including most notably "The Little Red Wagon" touring children's theatre company she created in 1971. TRY and its programs received many awards including a State Senate Resolution in 1973 honoring her work promoting the University's statewide outreach. By 1975 The Little Red Wagon was chosen by the New Hampshire Commission on the Arts to represent the entire State at the National US Bicentennial celebration in Washington DC where it did a dozen performances, including for several Congressional luncheons. Within the year, she founded and created an expansive six-vehicle multi-arts touring program she called CARAVAN with funding through the National Endowment for the Arts. In addition to the Little Red Wagon, CARAVAN toured six art forms (Music, Theater, Puppetry, Crafts, Poetry/Mime and Visual Arts), with annual audiences of more than 100,000.

Goldin was active in the NH Partners of the America's Program, developed cultural exchanges between N.H. and its sister state Ceara, Brazil. She also traveled to Brazil and replicated a statewide touring program for rural communities in Ceara based on her NH CARAVAN project. Susan created numerous other touring programs, in dance, opera and other art forms, most notably the ARTSReach touring program in classical literature which Susan and faculty associates toured throughout N.H. By the time of Susan's departure from UNH in 1998, Try's combined programs had presented more than 6,500 performances for more than one million people, primarily in New Hampshire and northern New England. The last show she presented was a special free community healing performance in Colebrook after the shooting tragedy in that town. Susan held two positions at UNH and in addition to Director of TRY Susan served on the Communication faculty at the University in 1973 where she carried a full course load in both introductory and advanced level courses. She taught in the Humanities and developed and taught courses in the Theater Department. For several years in the 1980's Susan received the highest teaching evaluations in the UNH College of Liberal Arts. She taught at UNH Manchester, at Great Bay Community College and also provided organizational and communication consulting for area non-profits and local agencies. Goldin was for many years on the touring committee for the New Hampshire Commission on the Arts. She served on numerous UNH campus committees and was, before unionization, the secretary of the UNH AAUP committee. In 1992 when the University created "The Presidential Award For Excellence" Susan Goldin was chosen as the first recipient.

Susan was active in Temple Israel, serving on the Board of Directors and on various committees. She also was active in the Portsmouth Democratic Party.

Susan Goldin is survived by her 39-year partner and husband Douglas R. Tilton of Portsmouth, a brother Stephen J. Goldin, his wife Deborah Bussel, and her much beloved niece Lily – all of Miami, Florida and Durham, North Carolina, by her father and mother-in-law, Douglas and Mary Tilton of North Salem, N.H., by a sister-in-law Linda Bellomo (Matthew), brother-in-law Scott Tilton (Winnie) all of North Salem, N.H., and by her dear nieces and nephews, Brianna and Erica Tilton and Anthony and Marcus Bellomo, also by several special cousins, many friends, hundreds of former Communication and Theater students, former TRY employees, and thousands of Little Red Wagon/CARAVAN audience members.

SERVICES: Services will be at 2 p.m., on Sunday, at Temple Israel, 200 State Street in Portsmouth, with a graveside service to follow. Shiva will be observed Sunday, at Temple Israel following the cemetery service and on Monday, Tuesday and Wednesday from 12-5 p.m., and 7-9 p.m., at Susan's home in Portsmouth.

Donations in Susan Goldin's name may be made to the Rabbi's Discretionary Fund of Temple Israel, 200 State St., Portsmouth, NH, 03801, or to the Lillian D. Goldin Education Scholarship Fund, Attn: Judy Renaud, Finance Dept., City Hall, 1 Junkins Ave., Portsmouth, NH, 03801. Arrangements are under the direction of J. Verne Wood Funeral Home-Buckminster Chapel. www.jvwoodfuneralhome.com.