Doris F. Sutliff

Doris F Sutliff, nee Doris Jean Field, age 93, a resident of Westminster Bradenton, in Bradenton, FL, died on December 12, 2025 under loving palliative care at the TideWell Hospice Home in Bradenton.

Doris was born in Buffalo, NY during the Great Depression and had one sister, Phyllis, who was almost eighteen years her senior. She was active in scouting and loved the outdoors, camping, and gardening from an early age.

She attended Syracuse University where she earned her A.B. degree in 1953. It was there she met her future husband, Richard J Sutliff of Binghamton, NY, who was a veteran pursuing a degree under the post-WWII GI Bill. Married in 1950, the couple would call Syracuse home for over five decades. Doris wanted a big family and five children were born during the next twelve years.

She was a lifelong learner and researched topics with gusto earning her M.A. in 1967, and her M.S.W. in 1975, both at SU, while managing her household. As a compassionate social worker, Doris loved helping people and advocating for the disadvantaged. She was highly regarded by her peers and helped many in their careers in social work.

After her retirement in 1995, Doris and Dick started “snow-birding” to Bradenton, Florida. After Dick’s untimely death in 2004, Doris decided to make her home in Bradenton. She became very involved in the Manatee Unitarian Universalist Fellowship (MUUF) and was on the board of directors many years. It was there she met a charming widower 10 years her senior, Charles McLeod, who became her beloved life partner until his death in 2021.

Doris loved following the lives of friends and family and had an amazing memory for details about each person. She loved many activities while at Westminster – especially gardening, volunteering, musical gatherings, and playing games with friends and visiting family. She was very mechanically inclined and enjoyed repairing or even altering all manner of contraptions to make them work just the way she wanted. She was well travelled and made many trips with friends and/or family taking her throughout our great country and as far away as St. Petersburgh, Russia. A cruise with family in celebration of her 80th birthday made a cherished memory for all. Very practical, frugal, and thrifty throughout her life, she felt honored to be able to give financial support to worthy causes.

Doris is survived by four of her five children, James F Sutliff of Norman, OK, William A Sutliff and wife Carol of Hernando, FL, Richard P Sutliff of Statesville, NC and John A Sutliff and wife Jennifer of Burnt Hills, NY.She is also survived by twelve grand-children and nine great-grand-children whom she loved and nurtured during her long life.

She was predeceased by her husband of over 53 years, Richard J Sutliff, and her daughter, Linda Sutliff Cone.

A Celebration of her Life will be held at the MUUF building on 322 15th St W, Bradenton, FL 34205 on Saturday, January 17th at 11AM.

A Graveside Service in New York is planned for later in the year.