Susan D. Cigelnik

Rochester – Susan Cigelnik died on Monday, October 8, 2018 at age 94. She was predeceased by her husband Herbert “Ciggie” Cigelnik, and by her three loving sisters, Alice, Elizabeth, and Rosemary, and her brother Lawrence. She is survived by her daughter Linda (James) Reilly, son Darryl Cigelnik, granddaughter Jennifer Susan (Glenn) Kellogg, grandson Daniel (Meg) Reilly and their daughters, Josephine and Annabelle.

Susan was born in Chicago on December 16, 1923. She lived in Aurora, Illinois, for most of her adult life until she moved to Rochester, NY, in 2014.

Susan married her one true love, Ciggie, on May 27, 1942. Ciggie had already enlisted in the Marine Corps by then, and was headed to Midway Island. Susan’s father urged her not to get married until Ciggie returned safely from the war, but Susan decided to ignore that advice and proceed with the wedding plans. It wasn’t so much that she was defying her father’s advice, as just relying on her perpetual optimism that Ciggie would return. That optimism and positive outlook was the hallmark of Susan’s life. As with everyone’s life, there were ups and downs, but Susan always remained positive and strong. She was an inspiration to her family for how to face life’s adversities.

For much of Susan’s early married life, she was a homemaker. But when her children left for college she joined Ciggie in his business, The Aurora Trophy Center, and learned how to engrave trophies and plaques, as well as do the bookkeeping for the store. She was very proud of her work there.

Working outside of the home gave Susan another excuse to shop for new clothes, one of her favorite pastimes. She was a regular at Banana Republic long before her daughter or granddaughter had even heard of the store. Visiting “Banana,” as she called it, was to enter Susan’s fan club, where the staff all greeted her by name and ushered her over to the Petite Size 4 section.

Susan’s other hobby was gardening. From April to November, she devoted part of most days to taking care of her flower beds, and she did this until she was 90 years old. The new owners of her house in Aurora recently admitted that they were unable to keep up with all the gardening work and had to eliminate some of the flower beds.

For most of her four years in Rochester, Susan lived at The Gables in Brighton. She and her family were grateful for the care and companionship from Connie from Loving Care aide service. At The Gables, Susan was known as “The Dancing Lady” by the numerous entertainers who played music for the residents. She had a smile and a kind word for everyone at the Gables. She will be missed.

In honor of Susan’s memory, donations may be made to the Highland Park Conservancy in Rochester, NY, or The Morton Arboretum in Lisle, IL, or to the charity of your choice.