Stars of the Stockade
Stars of the Stockade: Suzy Unger
By Sylvie Briber
Suzy says, “The Stockade was always home to me even though we moved around so much!”
When Suzy was three years old, her father was overseas in the Marine Corps during the Korean War. Suzy’s mother decided to stay with her own mother and father at 19 Front Street in the Stockade while Suzy’s grandfather worked at GE. What a wonderful place the Stockade was then, when her grandmother would take her and her sister, Teddy, to tea with maiden ladies in the neighborhood!
In 1954, Suzy moved away while her father was stationed all around the world. But she was soon back in the Stockade for 5th grade at Riverside School, now Riverside Condos at 137 Front St., and had wonderful playmates, when the Stockade was filled with many young families. With her father still away, her grandfather treated Suzy, her two sisters, her mother and grandmother to an European tour – England, France, Switzerland and Italy! Suzy’s father later met them in Rome and her family then made their home in California.
The family came back to Schenectady and bought a house in the GE plot on Adams Road and Suzy attended Linton High School, class of 1968.
In 1964, her grandfather died but her grandmother continued to live at 19 Front for 8 more years.
About 1970, Suzy’s family bought 142 Front St. in the Stockade with her grandmother living upstairs. Suzy’s father soon became president of the Stockade Association.
Suzy’s Stockade experience shaped her whole life: She went on to college, majoring in history, and then worked at the National Trust for Historic Preservation in their DC headquarters. She met her husband, Rich, through her work, as he was the City Planner for Rock Springs, Wyoming. In September of 1980 they married at St. George’s Church in the Stockade with a garden reception at 142 Front Street.
They then went back to live in Wyoming. Rich’s work as a city planner brought him to Florida while Suzy was a history teacher there. Suzy’s mother was approaching 90 years old and needed their help, so when both of them retired in 2014, they couldn’t wait to come back to the Stockade and give
back to the community.
Suzy served on the Stockade Association board and then became president from 2019 to 2023. With her leadership, the Association developed the Stockade Streetscape Plan. Her dream was that neighbors would come together and make decisions about the trees, side-
walks and traffic.
The Stockade Association hired consultants and secured grants for the project, a blueprint for still much work ahead. Suzy continues to be on the Stockade board as Secretary, but now adds an additional leadership role: President of the Schenectady County Historical Society. Suzy says, “we have an exceptional Historical Society with a breadth of programs, tours and treasured archives on exhibit and I am proud to be president during this 250 celebration!
