Susan Baldwin

She was born on August 10, 1954, in Morristown, NJ, to Drs. Russel R. Baldwin and Marcella Vig Baldwin.

She is survived by her husband, Gary Lewis Gepner, 65, of Stamford, CT, daughters, Abigail May Gepner, of Brooklyn, NY and Dorothy Rose Gepner, of Japan, brothers, John V. Baldwin, of Cernobbio, Italy, Christopher Baldwin, of Belvedere, SD, and Timothy O. “Toby” Baldwin of Irving, TX, and by her sisters, Rosemary Baldwin, of Chicago, IL, and Maria Sloan of Jackson Hole WY, her nieces Rachael Sloan, Rebecca Hayward, Chloe Baldwin, Marcella Baldwin, Mia Baldwin, Clara Baldwin, and nephews Jason Sloan, Dylan Hayward, Miles Hayward, Kaizan Baldwin,Yuzan Baldwin, Marshall Baldwin, Tyler Dianocki and Quinn Baldwin, and Susan’s cat, Gala, and Gary’s dog, Danny.

Her younger sister, Rosemary, called her Pu-san, as she couldn’t pronounce Susan, which got shortened to “Pooh”, which stuck as a nickname through her childhood. Only her high school friends were allowed to call her Sue. As an adult, she always wanted to be known as Susan.

She graduated from Mountain Lakes High School in 1972, and was the class salutatorian. She spent the following year as a Rotary exchange student in Japan. She graduated from Radcliffe College in 1977 with a B.A. in East Asian Studies and earned her Masters in Library Science (MLS) from Barnard College in 1984.

She met her husband, Gary Gepner, through a mutual friend, Miriam Kimmelman, at a party Gary had in his 5th floor studio apartment on the Upper East Side in NYC in 1983. Gary put her coat in the bathtub, as no space was available in the closet, and it got soaked the evening of the party. Susan still agreed to go out with Gary, and the rest is history.

Susan and Gary married on December 29, 1985 at their apartment in Astoria, NY.

After graduating Radcliffe, Susan worked at the Japan Society in NYC, while studying at Barnard. After receiving her MLS, she worked as a librarian at NYC libraries including Jefferson Market Library in Greenwich Village and St. Agnes Library on the upper West Side. She worked as a librarian at the Turn of River Branch and Weed Branch, and later as a supervisor for over 25 years at the Turn of River Branch, Harry Bennet Branch and Weed Branch libraries of the Ferguson Library in Stamford, CT.

Her passion was books. She loved to help others find the perfect book, and was an avid reader.

After receiving her Alzheimer diagnosis, Gary and Susan sold their Glenbrook home and moved to downtown Stamford, where Susan convinced Gary to take ballroom dancing lessons. Susan also loved her Zumba classes at Tully Health Center, Art classes at the Stamford Senior Center and Mindfulness Meditation at the Ferguson Library.

Susan will be missed by many in the community. She was loved by all who met her.

There will be shiva observed thru Zoom held by Temple Sinai of Stamford, CT on November 22nd 1-4p, 6-9p (service at 7p) and 23rd and 24th 6-9p. Call Temple for details.

There will be a post-COVID celebration of Susan’s life when we all can be together.

Contributions in Susan’s memory can be made to Friends of Ferguson Library or to the Library Fund of Temple Sinai.