Susanne (D'Asti) Burtchell, 76, of Boston, died October 19, 2025, at Brigham and Women's Hospital in Boston surrounded by family. She was born on October 5, 1949, in Boston, daughter of the late Guido D'Asti and Emma (Baccari) Lee.  Susanne lived in Hyde Park (Boston) with her 3 siblings during her childhood. She enjoyed playing tennis, badminton, and the usual childhood games and testing her skill with the popular hula hoop. In her teen years she was a Beatles fan and was fortunate to attend a Beatles concert with thousands of other screaming girls.

Susanne started playing piano at the young age of 7 or 8. After years of practice and lessons, she became a gifted classical pianist. She played the piano so beautifully and with such great passion and feeling that she earned a full scholarship to the New England Conservatory of Music but ultimately followed a different path. She was a good dancer as well as an accomplished pianist and instead became a dance instructor at Arthur Murray's Dance Studio where she met her future husband, Walter Burtchell. They had two beautiful children, Alana and Derek, but divorced after 3 years.

Susanne's reading of the book, Siddhartha by Herman Hesse, set her on a path of self-knowledge and self-improvement that continued throughout her life. On this journey Susanne frequently practiced meditation and read Pema Chodron's book, "How to Meditate: A Practical Guide to Making Friends with Your Mind" as well as many other books by Pema Chodron. She also read many books by Deepak Chopra on meditation.

Susanne was a very creative person who enjoyed painting and writing poetry as well as dancing and piano playing.  Here is a beautiful poem that she wrote:

If I Tell You, by Susanne Burtchell

Susanne took pleasure in observing animals, flowers, people, and nature and spent as much time outdoors as she could. She had many friends and enjoyed entertaining them and her family at her home in Newton.  She had a generous and kind spirit. Susanne loved her friends and family, especially her daughter, Alana, and her 4 grandchildren.  She will be greatly missed by her friends and family.

She is survived by her daughter, Alana Duckworth, her siblings, Anita Murphy and her husband David, Stephen D'Asti and his wife Diane, and Roberta Ryan-Chermely and her husband Thomas, her 4 grandchildren, Caitlin, Brice, Cassidy, and Dylan Duckworth, and her nephews, Brian and Tyler Chermely, Steve D'Asti, and Sean and Tim Murphy, her nieces, Melissa Leppek and Lisa Belle, her great-nieces Nina Murphy, Gianna Belle, Ivy Chermely, and Emma Chermely, and her great-nephews Seif Murphy, Dom Belle, Benjamin Murphy, and Anthony D'Asti.  She was predeceased by her son Derek and her parents.

Visitation will take place at the Bedford Funeral Home, 167 Great Rd., Bedford, on Monday, October 27, 2025, from 4:00-7:00 PM.

A funeral service will be held at the funeral home on Tuesday, October 28, 2025, at 10:00 AM with interment to follow at St. Joseph Cemetery in West Roxbury.

In lieu of flowers, memorial contributions can be made to the National Kidney Foundation, 30 East 33rd Street, New York, NY 10016 or to NAMI, National Alliance on Mental Illness, 4301 Wilson Blvd, Suite 300, Arlington, VA. 22203.