Susan Scarponi

Susan Lenox Scarponi (née Rini), 69, of Fairlawn, Ohio, passed away on July 4, 2025 in
her backyard garden, where she loved to watch the birds hatch their eggs and to fume
at the rabbits eating her flowers.

Raised in northeast Ohio, Susan nurtured lifelong connections that reflected her deep
sense of community. She married her high school sweetheart at the age of 19, sharing
with him a passion for learning, a son, and a decade of love, before losing him too soon
to cancer. Susan remarried and built a rich, full life—raising two more children,
balancing volunteer work and a return to her career, and finding herself beset by dogs
(whom she adored more than she would ever admit). Susan's optimism and cheerful
resilience in the face of life's turns was a source of strength and inspiration to those
around her.

Susan’s house was always a home for anyone who needed one, from a colleague’s
newborn whom she fostered while still in graduate school, to her children’s friends,
partners, and dogs. Everyone knew her home would be full of delicious cooking, wry
humor, and unconditional love. Her children's friends affectionately referred to her as the
Cookie Lady, because she made sure no school event or teenage hangout was wanting
for baked goods. She also had a keen eye for beauty and whimsy, filling her home and
her jewelry box with eclectic antiques and folk art.

Susan’s devotion to family was unwavering. As much as she cherished having all her
ducklings under one roof, nothing made her happier than watching her children forge
their own paths and build joyful, loving lives around the world. She was always ready
with steady support, yet scrupulous about letting others make their own choices,
offering guidance only when asked. In recent years, she cared tenderly for her own
parents and embraced her newest role—Nana to her first grandson—with boundless
love and delight.
Susan dedicated her professional life to the education of children with special needs. A
tireless and devoted advocate for students and their families, she worked to ensure that
children of all backgrounds had access to the same resources and opportunities she
would have demanded for her own. Following her recent retirement, Susan was looking
forward to volunteering as a surrogate parent in special education hearings, where she
would have advocated for children without parental representation.

She is survived by her mother, Doris Rini of Medina; her three children—Andy (Emmett)
of Denver, Rachel (Steven) of Deerfield, and Charlotte (Alex) of Eugene—whom she
shared with her former husband, David Scarponi; and her beloved grandson, Danny.
She was preceded in death by her father, Joe Rini, and her first husband, Daniel Lenox.

A celebration of Susan's life will be held in Fairlawn at a later date. In lieu of flowers,
donations may be made to The Arc of Ohio or to the Ohio Coalition for the Education of
Children with Disabilities.

Susan read the obituaries every day "to check and see if I'm in there yet," as she'd joke.
Well, she is now. Hope this one was worth reading, Mom. We love you always.

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