[Congressional Record Volume 171, Number 182 (Friday, October 31, 2025)]
[Extensions of Remarks]
[Page E1020]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




                HONORING THE LIFE OF SUSAN L. ZOLOTOROFE

                                  _____
                                 

                       HON. BRIAN K. FITZPATRICK

                            of pennsylvania

                    in the house of representatives

                        Friday, October 31, 2025

  Mr. FITZPATRICK. Mr. Speaker, I rise today to honor and celebrate the 
beautiful life, legacy, and memory of my Constituent Susan L. 
Zolotorofe who was a cherished daughter, a treasured friend, and a 
beloved member of our Bucks County community. Susan passed away on 
October 24, 2025, at her home in Ivyland, Pennsylvania, at the age of 
53, after courageously enduring complications stemming from radiation 
treatments she underwent as a teenager to overcome a brain tumor. Her 
life is a testament to courage, perseverance, and a heart overflowing 
with love.
  Born on August 17, 1972, at Abington Hospital, Susan entered this 
world with a radiant smile. Her smile would go on to warm the hearts of 
everyone privileged enough to know her. From her early years, Susan 
possessed a gentleness of spirit that enriched the lives of all who 
crossed her path.
  Susan dedicated her life to helping children grow, learn, and feel 
seen. She spent many years working in preschools and day care centers 
across Bucks County, including her service at the YMCA in Warminster. 
For Susan, child care was not merely a profession but a calling. She 
believed that every child deserved compassion, patience, and 
encouragement, and she gave those gifts freely. Her kindness was not 
loud but was quiet, steady, and deeply felt.
  For over twenty years, Susan faithfully served at Addisville Church, 
assisting with Sunday School and Vacation Bible School alongside her 
devoted mother. Her work within the church reflected her strong faith 
and the values she lived each day. The values of care, humility, 
service, and love.
  Some of Susan's happiest moments were spent near the water. From her 
childhood visits to Silver Bay on Lake George, New York, to cherished 
days walking the beaches of Ocean City, New Jersey, these places 
offered her peace and filled her with wonder. They were her 
sanctuaries, where the world slowed enough for her heart to feel light.
  Though she was strikingly tall and beautiful, it was her smile, a 
smile that was warm, gentle, and unmistakably genuine that defined her. 
Even during her most difficult medical challenges, that smile remained. 
It was a symbol of her resilience, her faith, and her refusal to let 
hardship dim her spirit.
  Susan is survived by her loving parents, Eileen (nee Fetter) and Don 
Zolotorofe, along with a large, devoted family and a circle of friends 
who will forever hold her memory close. Each carries with them the 
profound imprint of her kindness and the example of how to live with 
grace.
  Mr. Speaker, the true measure of a life is not found in what we 
accumulate, but in the hearts we touch. By that measure, Susan lived a 
life overflowing with purpose and love. She showed us what it means to 
persevere with dignity, to care without condition, and to walk through 
this world with a smile that reminds others they matter.
  May her memory be a blessing, and may we honor her legacy by living 
as she did, with compassion, faith, and joy.
  It is my pleasure to honor her in the United States Congress, so that 
future generations may know of the extraordinary kindness and courage 
of Susan L. Zolotorofe, a woman whose light continues to shine.

                          ____________________