Susan Aberman, long-serving Chief of Staff to Principal Fortier, passed away in palliative care on Saturday, September 15, 2018, in Montreal.
Her funeral service will be held at Paperman & Sons on Monday, September 17 at 2 p.m.
As the Principal’s Chief of Staff, Aberman applied her keen intelligence and sharp insights to virtually every corner of the University’s operations. In honour of her nine years of exceptional service and dedication as a member of McGill’s senior administration, the University flag will fly at half-staff on the day of her funeral.
Aberman held an undergraduate degree from Bard College, and graduate degrees from the Hotel School of Cornell University and Concordia University. Her long, distinguished career in the hotel and hospitality industry took her all over the world, with leadership positions in Canada, the U.S., Switzerland and England.
Family obligations brought her back to Montreal in the early 2000s. After serving as Chief of Staff to the Provost of Concordia University, she joined McGill in 2008. During her nine years at McGill, Aberman served two Principals, Suzanne Fortier and Heather Munroe-Blum. Aberman took leave from her position in 2017 due to illness.
She is survived by her husband, Louis Dzialowski, her brothers Arnold and Zave and their families, and the families of her late sisters Myrna and Rosalie.
Susan Aberman’s family asks that donations be made in her memory to the Montreal Neurological Institute & Hospital Foundation or to MUHC’s Division of Supportive and Palliative Care Programs.
My first contact with Susan was when professional obligations forced her to give away a pair of opera tickets to the first person to respond to her email. I was fast and lucky. After that, we had occasions to share impressions on our extracurricular love of opera, music and arts in general. Sad to see such a passionate person go after such a terrible illness. My condolences to her friends, colleagues and family.