Susan Fenley Shagwert passed away peacefully on March 19, 2025. She was surrounded by family and friends, including her daughter Josephine Shagwert, son-in-law Jonathan Robinson, and sister Arabella Demers. She was born in Switzerland to the late Carolyn Bell Fenley of Swansea, Massachusetts and the late George A. Fenley of Mapleville, Rhode Island. She grew up in post-war Germany and moved with her mother, older brother George, and younger sister Arabella to her father’s home village of Mapleville when she was eight. A woman of great intelligence, steadfastness, loyalty, adventurousness, and curiosity, she leaves a legacy that will be remembered by all who knew her.
Susan led a life full of deep and meaningful friendships and travels that took her all over the world. As a young woman she au paired with her sister in Switzerland, worked in a dentist’s office in Dublin in the late 1960s, and drove a city bus in Chapel Hill, North Carolina where she fell in love with Richard Jude Shagwert, the fellow bus driver who became her husband. Her partnership with Richard was her heart and soul, and it is a comfort to know that she is with him now.
Susan and Richard created a beautiful life, home, and garden on the East Side of Providence. Susan completed many of the home improvements by hand, from painting and planting to refinishing the wood on the doorframes and windows. Her style, evident in her house, garden, cooking, and personal fashion, was classic, elegant, and practical, always with just the right splash of color and pizzazz. Susan’s care extended to her community; she spearheaded a tree planting effort that transformed her street, and for many years hosted an open-house Christmas party with all neighbors invited. Her book club meetings always brought her joy, since they centered on nearly all her favorite things – books, conversations, friends, and food.
Susan worked in the admissions office at the Miriam Hospital for over 30 years, walking to work each day. Her vacations were dedicated to visiting friends and family around the country. Memorable ones included camping and road trips as far as Prince Edward Island with her friends the Daleys and Weeks; food and fun-filled stays in New Paltz, NY with her friends the Browns; and beach stays at the Jersey Shore with all the Hayek, Dwyer, and Kauffman cousins, aunts, and uncles.
Over the years she fit in more adventures abroad. She spent a month learning Spanish in Guatemala with her husband. She took her daughter and niece Eva to Europe to see where she was born. She rode her bike through Syria, Lebanon, Jordan, and the West Bank of Palestine with her daughter. And she went on a cooking tour of Oaxaca, Mexico for her 15th birthday. She was born on leap year, so she celebrated her birthday in a big way every four years. In recent years, she was overjoyed to be able to get to know her son-in-law’s family through two visits to his home country of Great Britain.
Susan loved her 20+ nieces and nephews dearly, including not only her biological ones as well as the children of her closest friends. She made sure that her daughter Josephine was the least lonely only child because of the cousins who always surrounded her. The loved ones Susan leaves behind are lucky to have so many things that will spark her memory: good books, movies, and conversations; simple and elegant meals; bike rides and travel; leap years; and the blooms on her street and in her garden.
Visiting hours will be held for Susan at AA Mariani & Son Funeral Home, 200 Hawkins Street, Providence Thursday, March 27, 2025, from 4pm-7pm. Visitation is from 4pm-6pm, with remembrance from 6pm-7pm. All are welcome.
A ceremony will also be held when she is interred next to her husband ashes at Swan Point Cemetery in Providence, Rhode Island. Date to be determined.
To plant a beautiful memorial tree in memory of Susan F Shagwert, please visit our Tree Store.
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