Susan Kaartinen

Born on March 31, 1952, Susan Kaartinen (Abrahamson) 68, passed away peacefully at home, surrounded by loved ones on March 27, 2021 after a five year courageous battle with cancer.

Daughter of Agnes and George Abrahamson, Susan grew up in Scituate. Her love for adventure and the outdoors was evident at early age, as she was often found exploring neighborhood fields, woods, the many beaches, or climbing trees. Her absolute favorite teenage haunt was Pegotty Beach. She made a point of visiting Peggotty Beach whenever was in Scituate. Her last visit was on March 17, 2021.

Upon graduation from Scituate High School, she attended Mount Ida Jr. College. She then traveled to Colorado via Outward Bound, where she spent two weeks hiking and camping in the Rocky Mountains.  

After returning to Scituate, she moved to Nantucket Island for a year, using a bicycle as her primary transportation.  She then decided to move to Aspen, CO in 1972 with her best friend. Aspen was Susan’s home for the next 23 years.  

In Aspen she fully embraced the outdoor life and challenge, skiing on beautiful powder snow, riding her road bike up the surrounding mountain passes, rock climbing, hiking and windsurfing. She opened a lawn care service, which she developed into a successful business. She was briefly married and divorced before meeting her second husband, Hannu Kaartinen, in 1990. Hannu came from Finland to spend a winter skiing, but never went back. Susan and Hannu were married on September 28, 1991. They lived in Aspen another four years, when her husband’s job took them first to Sarasota, FL and then Tallahassee, FL.

In 1999 Susan and Hannu moved to Peterborough, NH, which they’ve ever since called home. They became members of the Union Congregational Church, where Susan was actively involved, serving as deaconess, member of committees and helping with various church programs.

She continued her outdoors activities in New England as well, with skiing, snowshoeing in the winter and hiking, kayaking or windsurfing on Dublin Lake in the summer. However, her favorite pleasure was road biking. She absolutely loved the backroads around Peterborough, Hancock and Harrisville.

Moving to New England enabled her to be closer to family. She visited her sisters, taking her nieces and nephews on outings, often to the beach. In addition, she organized Little Christmas, an Abrahamson family tradition celebrating Epiphany and her mother’s birthday.  

She also reconnected with her Scituate high school mates, re-kindling old friendships as she organized the 45th High School reunion.

She is survived by her husband, Hannu Kaartinen, her brothers George and Carl Abrahamson, her sisters Nancy Lloyd, Lynda Murphy and Marguerite Fitzgerald and her beloved cat Sara. She is also, survived by many nieces, nephews and cousins.

Susan will be remembered for her smile that brought light everywhere, her appreciation of life and her compassion.  She took special care to remember minute details about the people she met and those she loved.

A memorial service is planned for family and close friends on April 10, 2021 at 12:00 pm in Peterborough at Union Congregational Church, according to the current state Covid-19 guidelines. The memorial service will be streamed live on the UCC Facebook page (https://www.facebook.com/peterboroughucc/).

In lieu of flowers, memorial donations may be made in Susan’s memory to the Monadnock Humane Society at 101 W. Swanzey Rd, Swanzey, NH 03446.

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