Irving Susel, 72, the accomplished son of Holocaust survivors whose dynamic career included influential positions at the US Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), Dept. of Energy (DOE) and Dept. of Homeland Security (DHS), passed away April 11, 2020 in Bethesda, MD from kidney cancer.
The private graveside burial took place April 17, 2020 at Judean Memorial Gardens in Olney, Maryland.
“We all loved Irv, and his family and close friends brought him tremendous joy,” his son Elliot Susel eulogized at the funeral. “Those who knew Irv sought his counsel for even the toughest decisions, and he was always eager to find the optimal path.”
“But what about the situation we find ourselves in now, a world without Irv? How do we solve that? As it turns out, Irv has been solving this problem for us for many years. He’s rubbed off on each of us, impacting our lives for the better. We now carry the best of his spirit in ours.”
Mr. Susel (Irv) was born Dec. 19, 1947 in a Displaced Persons (DP) camp in Munich to Holocaust survivors Ann (Channa Salomonowitz) Susel and Samuel (Shabtai) Susel.
Sam Susel was born in Eastern Poland in the Manievitz shtetl (later became Manievichi in western Ukraine). Most of his family and shtetl were murdered in mass executions (1941-42). This later became known as “Holocaust by Bullets,” the “hidden chapter of the Holocaust” at the beginning of WW II. Sam survived in the forest fighting as a partisan until the end of the war.
Ann, who was born in the Burzenin shtetl in Poland, was sent to the Lodz Ghetto with her family for years of forced labor before being sent to Auschwitz. She miraculously survived seven near-death experiences as a teenager, while most of her family perished.
Irv was born Issac (Itzhak in Hebrew/Yiddish), in honor of his paternal grandfather, and also his mother’s brother, both killed in the Holocaust.
When the family immigrated to the USA in 1951, his parents changed his name from Issac to Irving, seeking a name that sounded more American.
Raised on Denver’s West Side, Mr. Susel graduated from Colfax Elementary, Lake Junior High and North High (1966), and was fortunate not to be drafted into the Vietnam War.
He earned a BS in Engineering Science (1970) and MS in Systems Analysis (1971) from the University of Colorado, and an MBA from Stanford University (1973) with emphasis in decision analysis and public policy.
Irv landed his dream job at the US Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) in Washington, DC. He advanced rapidly due to his pioneering use of computer analysis to model government policy decisions and became the youngest Division Branch Chief at EPA.
When the 1979 energy crisis hit, Irv joined a six-person White House task force, working in the Executive Office Building (located next to the West Wing), to envision and structure a new department, the US Dept. of Energy (DOE).
After working two years as Director of Policy & Evaluation at the new DOE he helped create, Irv left the federal payroll to become a consultant to both EPA and DOE on environmental and energy policy and decision analysis.
He spent 12 years as a partner at a highly regarded consulting organization and then co-founded Environomics, an elite analysis firm he led for 17 years, specializing in risk management, policy, regulatory and economic analysis.
Altogether, he consulted with EPA decision-making for over 30 years, specializing in air and water policy.
In 2012 Irv moved into a new position with high-level security clearance in the upper echelons of another new federal agency, the US Dept. of Homeland Security (DHS). He was tasked to develop decision modeling to help automate highly complex decisions across 22 agencies coordinated by DHS, including: FEMA, Coast Guard, Law Enforcement, Immigration/Customs (ICE), Border Control, Transportation, Cybersecurity, Secret Service, Countering Weapons of Mass Destruction, Biological Warfare Defense and Nuclear Incident Response.
Irv retired from the federal government at the age of 70, in December, 2017.
He had a lifetime passion for food and was a talented cook who always enjoyed planning the next meal for others to enjoy. A favorite hobby was collecting and trying every mushroom recipe he could find. He was a skilled video-gamer and enjoyed playing new and diverse games. Irv’s contagious giggle warmed the hearts of family, friends, and colleagues.
In January 2018, Irv was diagnosed with stage 4 kidney cancer that had spread to his leg and a lung. He underwent difficult surgeries and advanced chemo regimens, beating the odds. He nearly lost his leg and required a year of intense physical therapy to regain limited mobility. In 2019 he enjoyed two cruises and quality time with family and friends. Irv started 2020 on a positive note, including meeting his first grandchild shortly before his death in April, 2020.
“He was doing so well that it caught everyone by surprise when he died so abruptly” last year, said his brother Joel Susel, who added that Irv’s wife Gail, daughter Becky and son Elliot devotedly maintained his quality of life. “He wasn’t just my big brother. He was my best friend, teacher, and mentor. Rest in peace Issac’l, so many life memories will live forever for the many who loved, befriended and looked to you for advice.”
Daughter Becky reflected, “I will miss his unconditional love, never ending wisdom, jolly belly laughs and that enormous smile.”
Irv is survived by his wife Gail Goldberg of Bethesda, MD; daughter Becky Susel, NYC; son Elliot (Jamie Paulsen) Susel and granddaughter Sophie Susel, Vienna, VA; and brother Joel Susel, Denver, CO.
Donations in honor of Irving Susel may be made to local organizations that provide meals or food to people who need it most.
— Sponsored
