Former Mass. State Sen. Susan Fargo Dies At 77

Susan Fargo, a Lincoln Democrat who served eight terms in the Massachusetts Senate, died last week after a period of declining health. She was 77.

An obituary posted to the website of Dee Funeral Home & Cremation Service of Concord said Fargo (née Cooley) died Friday, "seven months after the death of her beloved husband of 52 years, Foster M. Fargo Jr."

During her time on Beacon Hill — from 1997 until 2012 — Fargo was a champion of the state's workplace smoking ban law, a supporter of expanded buffer zones around abortion clinics and a staunch opponent of casino gambling legislation. She helmed the Committee on Public Health at the time of her retirement.

"It's time," the senator told the News Service in 2012 when she decided not to seek a ninth term. "I have been able to accomplish quite a bit and I'd rather go out at the top of my game than when people are really tired of me. I think you can stay around at a party too long."

Before being elected to the Senate, Fargo served as a selectman, public school teacher and editor of the Lincoln Journal. She graduated from Northwestern University and held two graduate degrees from Harvard University.

Fargo leaves a daughter, Amanda Reed Fargo, and a grandson, Brady Foster Fargo of Lincoln; a sister, Marcia Cooley Blevins of Oregon; a brother, William Carl Cooley and his wife Seddon Reed Savage of New Hampshire; and many nieces and nephews, according to her obituary.

A celebration of Fargo's life is scheduled to be held Saturday, Nov. 23 at 3 p.m. at the First Parish Church in Lincoln. A private burial will be held at Lincoln Cemetery. Fargo's obituary asks that contributions be made in lieu of flowers to The Trustees of Reservations, Planned Parenthood of Massachusetts or First Parish Church in Lincoln.