VINALHAVEN — Susan Angela Rice Lee, age 76, died at Sussman House, in Hospice Care on the morning of December 21, 2023. All of her life Susan had fought for peace and justice. She brought great intelligence and willpower to her commitment to equality and freedom. 

Susan practiced meditation for decades and always said that the focus and intention that were hers owed a lot to that practice. Susan worked for ‘Death with Dignity’ in Maine and Massachusetts. She loved to travel and during the years she worked, she visited countries near and far; Thailand, Denmark, Ecuador, England, and New Zealand among many others. 

Ever since she was a little girl she loved animals and almost always had a cat of her own. A beautiful green-eyed, red cat was with her for many years. Her cat played hide and seek with her and loved to fetch balls and toys like a dog. She adopted “Red” when she worked at Harvard University; her last professional project there was overseeing the renovations at Widener Library from 1999 through 2004. She retired from Harvard shortly thereafter.

Susan was a very private person who did not have a huge number of friends, but those she had were fiercely devoted to her, several she had known for over seventy years. More than one has said that Susan was their “rock” and there for them whenever they needed her. Hazel De Stephano, Nancy Jordan, and Susan Webster were among those closest to her.

Susan leaves behind her beloved  partner of many years, John Wright of Vinalhaven; her sister, Nan Lee; and her brother-in-law, Joe Stone of North Haven.  

Susan was devoted to her niece, Susannah Brown of Mt. Pleasant, South Carolina, and took great pleasure in Susannah’s accomplishments. Susan was able to meet Susannah’s daughter, Clare, when Susannah and her husband, Gardner Brown, visited Maine this past summer.

In accordance with her wishes there will be no funeral or memorial service for Susan, but please feel free to make a donation to Sussman House, 40 Anchor Drive, Rockport, Maine, 04856.

Arrangements are in the care of Burpee, Carpenter & Hutchins Funeral Home, Rockland.

To share a memory or condolence with Susan’s family, please visit their Book of Memories at www.bchfh.com.