Susan Richelew

Susan E. Richelew, 82, passed away on Sept. 27, 2024, at Oak Knoll Healthcare Center in Framingham. She was the widow of Meryl J. Richelew, who died in 2018. They had been married for 57 years. Born in Niagara Falls, New York, she was the daughter of the late Charles McConnell and Gladys Elson McConnell.

Susan grew up in Lewiston, New York, next to a working farm, and participated in the Girl Scouts. She also spent summers with family in Ontario, Canada and Chautauqua, New York. She graduated from Lewiston-Porter High School in 1959 and attended the University of New Mexico, where she studied archaeology.

An avid reader and music listener, Susan also fancied herself an amateur student of history and cultures, focusing much of her time on the history of the Middle East and Arabian cultures. She also developed an admiration for Native American peoples, and supported organizations whose purpose is to provide assistance to native tribal members.

Susan also enjoyed traveling, and she accompanied her husband on various business trips around the United States and the world. Over the years she either lived in or visited Canada, France, Belgium, Germany, the Netherlands, Italy, Australia, Japan, the Sultanate of Oman and the United Kingdom. She often interacted with ordinary folks she would encounter during travels around the country and around the world, whether it was the hotel housekeeping staff in Japan or Germany, a shopkeeper in Italy or her friends and family. This carried over to the time spent in the nursing home, where she developed friendships with some of the staff and residents.

She is survived by son Geoffrey Richelew of Hopkinton, sister Sheila Vaughan and brother-in-law Raymond Vaughan of Hamburg, New York, her nephew and nieces, cousins and other extended family.

In lieu of flowers, please consider making a donation to the Epilepsy Foundation, Attn: Donor Services, Epilepsy Foundation, 3540 Crain Highway, Suite 675, Bowie, MD 20716.

Private funeral arrangements have been entrusted to the Callanan Cronin Funeral Home in Hopkinton.

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