Susan S. "Susie" Smithers, a boutique manager and former Glyndon resident who was known for hosting stylish parties, died June 16 of multiple organ failure at Good Samaritan Hospital in West Palm Beach, Fla. She was 65.
"Susie was very special to us and one of the most talented people I've ever known," said Pokey Brown, a longtime friend who lives in Roland Park. "She was a wonderful cook and decorator, and just loads of fun. She was just a terrific person."
The daughter of Austin L. Smithers, a member of the New York Stock Exchange, and Marianne M. Smithers, a homemaker, Susan Sydney Smithers was born in Miami and raised in Gulf Stream, Fla.
She graduated in 1969 from the Masters School in Dobbs Ferry, N.Y., then attended Franklin University of Switzerland in Lugano.
Ms. Smithers started her career in retail and interior design, and held positions in Greenwich, Conn., Aspen, Colo., Los Angeles and New York City.
She moved to Glyndon in 1993 and while living there managed the old Dahne & Weinstein Jewelers at Green Spring Station in Brooklandville.
After moving to Palm Beach in 2000, Ms. Smithers managed Pierre Deux, a French country boutique located on the city's historic Worth Avenue.
Ms. Smithers had a flair for entertaining and a love of parties, said her husband of 23 years, Edward C. "Ned" Dukehart Jr., a former principal of Alex. Brown & Sons who now works in real estate sales with Brown Harris Stevens in Palm Beach.
"Susie was the Martha Stewart of Baltimore. She was a great decorator and had a great eye," said Pam Meir, a Roland Park resident who first met Ms. Smithers at the 1993 Maryland Hunt Cup. "She was a very talented woman."
"She looked very Palm Beach. She had lots of blond hair, wore beautiful clothes and jewelry. She was just magnificent," said Ms. Meir. "When she moved to Baltimore, she wanted to join things and be a part of Ned's life."
"Susie was loads of fun and always wanted lots of people around her. She loved to entertain and could cook anything. She was not a cookbook person and just dreamed up dishes that she prepared. She was so creative," said Ms. Brown.
"Whether it was a dinner party or a tailgate picnic at the Maryland Hunt Cup, her guests always raved," wrote Mr. Dukehart in an email. "She delighted in cocktails on the lawn of The Reading Room after a day at the races in Saratoga. Sailing on the Chesapeake and cruising in the Caribbean were also other favorites."
Ms. Smithers suffered from seafood allergies but nevertheless prepared seafood for her guests, said Ms. Brown. "Even though she couldn't eat it, she really knew how to prepare it."
She was a communicant of Bethesda-by-the-Sea Episcopal Church, 141 S. County Road, Palm Beach, where a memorial service will be held at 10:30 a.m. Wednesday.
In addition to her husband, Ms. Smithers is survived by stepson Edward C. Dukehart III of Easton; stepdaughter Victoria D. Eversmann of West Palm Beach; her father and stepmother, Anstiss Smithers of Lyme, N.H.; a half brother, Christopher Smithers of Denver; three stepbrothers, David Bartram of Darien, Conn., Stephen Bartram of Lake Forest, Ill., and Frederick Bartram of Durham, N.C.; and four step-grandchildren.
— Frederick N. Rasmussen