Susan Rosenbaum, Former Director,
Howard County Department of Citizen Services:
The
first thing to know about Susan is that she ADORES the color purple. As
nominator Dale Jackson noted, purple is associated with imagination and
inspiration. And it is the description
of Susan Rosenbaum. She started in 1977
as a program coordinator for the Office on Aging in the Howard County
Department of Citizen Services. She
recently ended her 34 year career as the Director of that Department. Along her journey Susan Rosenbaum has been
involved with the evolution of most human services in Howard County. Simply put, Susan has been instrumental in
expanding, improving and coordinating the human services delivery system in our
community. Listing all the projects in
which she’s made a major contribution in 34 years would take pages. They
including opening the county’s first Senior Center, developing a Supportive
Housing Program for person with disabilities, improving how Community
Partnerships are given out, and spearheading creation of a Human Services
Master Plan.
But
these all miss much of what made her an extraordinary leader, and friend to the
Howard County Human Services Community. Susan,
as one person noted has “an ability to connect with people…there isn’t anybody
that Susan ever met that she didn’t like.” Her gift for reaching out and
building partnerships was another strength.
“She never saw things as a we versus them…there was always give and
take,” noted friend and colleague Star Sowers. She added that Susan always
threw herself into whatever effort she was involved in. “She never asked anyone to do anything that
she wouldn’t do herself.She would always jump in “No one spoke with more passion about the
human service needs in our community,” states her nomination.
That passion continued into her personal
commitment, and her efforts with Relay for Life, Rebuild America, and Habitat
for Humanity continued the community involvement as she’s worked to improve
citizen lives in Howard County. Her legacy continues today, and will do so for
years to come. Howard County is a better
community because of her efforts.
