Cambridge Civic Journal Forum

February 16, 2012

Suzanne Green

Filed under: Cambridge — Robert Winters @ 10:57 am

Cambridge lost one of its most significant people last week. Suzanne Green, former member of the Cambridge Historical Commission and a prominent civic figure, died on Friday, February 10 at the age of 99. She was the devoted wife of the late Attorney Robert H. Green, beloved sister of James Revaleon (Theresa) and the late Paul Revaleon. She also leaves a host of nieces, nephews, other relatives and friends. Funeral services will be held on Friday, February 17, at 11:00am at St. Paul A.M.E. Church, Bishop Allen Drive and Columbia St. Visiting hour at the church is Friday 10:00-11:00am. Relatives and friends most kindly invited. Interment will follow at Cambridge Cemetery. [A.J. Spears Funeral Home CAMBRIDGE, MA 617-876-4047]
[Obituary and Guest Book]


From William B. King, Cambridge Historical Commission

Suzanne Green was our colleague on the Cambridge Historical Commission from 1982 to 2005. When the City Manager had the good sense to appoint her to the Commission, her principal career as a school teacher was behind her. She did not, however, stop being a teacher. She had a lifetime of learning, experience, intelligence — particularly of events, people and places in Cambridge — that she would import to us fortunate to serve with her over those 23 years. She was of course intimately familiar with the Central Square surroundings where she had lived her entire life, but she knew the rest of the city, too, and when we discussed cases in the Old Cambridge Historic District, she shared with us her recollections of teen-age girlfriends on Brattle Street.

Until her stroke slowed her down towards the end of her tenure, Suzanne rarely missed a meeting of the Commission. She was never late to a meeting. Even in snowy or rainy weather, she would walk to our late afternoon meetings, whether at the City Annex on Inman Street, the Lombardi Building, or in recent years the Senior Center. Many evenings after our meetings, I had the pleasure of driving her back to her beloved Worcester Street home; and she would share her pride of having moved only once during her lifetime, from the house in the back yard to the one on the street, and occasional snippets of her and Cambridge’s past.

At our Historical Commission meetings, she was always well-dressed and dignified. Although not as vociferous as some other Commissioners, when Mrs. Green spoke, the rest of us paid particular attention. Her points were respected and were usually reflected in our decisions on the matters before us. We — and the citizens of Cambridge — were and are better for the contributions she made to the Historical Commission and to the broader civic life we share in Cambridge.

William B. King, Chair, Cambridge Historical Commission, February 15, 2012

A brief biography of Suzanne Green may be found here:
http://www2.cambridgema.gov/historic/cwhp/bios_g.html#GreenSR

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