Susan Gale Coffin Gage

1936 - 1989

Susan Gale Coffin Gage (“Gale”) was the third daughter of Richard Guild Coffin and Susan Sims Coffin. Raised in Roslyn, Long Island, Gale graduated from Roslyn High School and then honed her administrative skills at the Katie Gibbs Secretarial School. She demonstrated a lightning-fast typing ability, as well as excellent shorthand skills.

At 22, Gale became engaged to her high-school sweetheart, Charles Adair Gage. They married in the summer of 1958 and their wedding was portrayed in a photographic essay in Life Magazine entitled Five Views of a Marriage from Members of the Wedding (July 28, 1958). Gale and Chuck had three children in quick succession: Catherine Adair, Richard Wood, and Carol Ann. After a ten-year marriage, Gale and Chuck divorced and Gale moved to Michigan with the children who were then ages 9, 8, and 6.

In Michigan, Gale put her administrative skills to good use as she worked to raise the kids and eventually purchase a home. At one time, she held three jobs to support her family: Monday through Friday, she was a full-time executive assistant at Ford Motor Company; in the evenings, she typed papers for the local college kids; and on the weekend, she checked people in at the community recreation center’s tennis courts. Despite this busy schedule, she somehow managed to make her kids her first priority – spending time with them and responding to all of their needs. She tackled life’s challenges with a can-do attitude and a strong work ethic.

In addition, Gale was athletic and beautiful. Her beauty was noted in 1956, when she traveled to Europe by ship with her dad and it turned out that Kim Novak, the famous actress, was on the same ship. As family lore has it, Gale and Kim wore the exact same dress at the ship’s dance, and Gale was considered by all to be just as glamorous as Kim. At the ranch, Gale loved to swim, water ski, socialize, and bask in the sun, but her very favorite thing to do was play tennis at the Point Lookout tennis courts. She was an “A” player, frequently competing in the men’s league. She had a quick and consistent serve, and strong, reliable ground strokes.

In 1979, Gale moved to Scottsdale Arizona and began a new career in residential real estate. She lived near her parents, Dick and Sue, and one by one, her three children followed her to Arizona. As a family, they enjoyed dinners together, card games (Ding-Man’s Dilly), and an annual Mother’s Day picnic celebration in the local park. Gale continued to play lots of tennis and added golf to her list of favorite activities.

During quiet times, Gale loved to read and, like her own mother Sue, Gale never stopped learning. In fact, in a quote for Life Magazine, Gale reflected: “I don’t want to be a woman whose scope is limited. I think I get this from my mother; she’s so intellectually stimulating.”
Throughout her life, which was too brief, Gale was an extremely positive, kind, energetic, and good-natured person who laughed easily and often. She brought joy to all who knew her and her legacy lives on.