Susan was a bell ringer in the english tradition.  A member of the MIT guild of bellringers, and a patient teacher, she was a part of hundreds of people’s first try with a pair of bells in hand  Here is a record of the performances that other ringers have made to honor her life.

https://bb.ringingworld.co.uk/event.php?id=13017

Those interested in making a donation in her memory, she suggests The Society for Historically Informed Performance, at http://sohipboston.org or towards cancer research at Dana Farber, via https://donate.pmc.org/jd0076  

It is so sad to see Susan go-- she was a wonderful and thoughtful person. She will be fondly remembered by everyone whose lives she touched.

I first met Susan as a fellow mathematics major at Dartmouth, and we were both in an informal bell-ringing group there (which had its meetings in the math offices!). It was immediately evident how bright Susan was, and how gentle a soul she had. In the decades since graduation, we had kept up with each other through occasional e-mail correspondence and Dartmouth reunions.

Sue's light and spirit were so evident and they brought so much to our space every time she visited!  We are so grateful that you both were a part of the Parts and Crafts community, sharing your skills and joys and passions. I will never forget how transformative it was to introduce our kids to bell ringing, and she filled the space with cheerful joy every time she came into it.  

I’ve had the pleasure have Susan a part of my life for close to 20 years. She was superb at her profession, extremely creative, and had an immense love of music going to folk festivals, playing harpsichord, and bell ringing to name a few. I have many great memories that will comfort me. God bless.

In Foxboro , MA, on handbells in 2Hr 50 Min, a peal of 5024 Double Norwich Court Bob Major  
Trebles C. Perry, 3-4 E. Hansen, 5-6 E.Futcher (Conductor) tenors J. Del Papa
To celebrate the life of Susan Assmann, a long time member of the MIT guild of bellringers.
First peal, tenors. Susan's favorite method.

When my husband and I moved to Boston, Susan was one of the first bell-ringers to welcome us.  She helped us improve as handbell learners and was always a kind teacher.  She was also an insightful conversationalist.  I enjoyed her stories and understanding of local traditions, and will fondly remember her warmth and patience.

I remember Susan and our small handbell group well at Dartmouth College in 1974-75. She was a wonderful and steady addition to our group especially since I was still a beginning handbell ringer and terrible at conducting. I'm so pleased to learn about her successful math and ringing career, she became the best ringer from the group. Thank you for this tribute.

Susan was justifiably proud of her published work, more than 80 papers that have been cited more than 5,000 times.  She always considered it her true legacy.   I have added a bibliography to the "Her Life" page.

Today should have marked 32 years together.  I will mark it by playing the Bach St. Matthews Passion, the piece we heard together in Jordan Hall that Saturday so long ago.

Susan was a light that will forever shine in her work and in the memories of those that loved her.

I was a graduate student at UMass Lowell taking a class of hers in Graph Theory at some point.  I was a struggling student for a few years.  When I needed some assistance in graph theory, I was nervous to approach her because other teachers were condescending to me.  I found out as someone said, hers was a gentle soul.  Shame that someone capable of contributing in math was taken away.

I, too, was one of the many students she touched while she taught at Lowell. She remains one of my favorite professors ever, and I acknowledged as much in my master's thesis, mentioning her by name in the preface. She was brilliant, kind, compassionate, and had a warm sense of humor. Sad to learn she is no longer with us.