Susan Clemens-Bruder

Susan W. Clemens-Bruder, 78, of Emmaus passed away on July 4th, 2026. Susan was born to Frederick and Mabel Wombwell of Trenton, New Jersey, grew up in Ewing Township, and attended Ursinus College earning a degree in Physical Education. She married M. Scott Clemens in 1970. 

After teaching for several years at Souderton Area High School, she turned her focus to family and community. She loved dance and choreographed numerous high school and community theater musicals. She taught aerobics, volunteered in the community, and was an active member of Emmanuel Lutheran Church in Souderton, PA. She later earned a master's degree and completed all coursework and comprehensive exams for a PhD in history from Lehigh University. She taught at several local colleges including Montgomery County Community College, Lehigh Carbon Community College, DeSales University, and finally Muhlenberg College where she was a Senior Lecturer with a focus on Twentieth Century Intellectual and Cultural History. She retired in 2020 after over 20 years of passionate devotion to her students and a commitment to collect and preserve the oral history of industry in the Lehigh Valley. 

Outside of work, she found joy in researching her family ancestry, taking Pilates classes, road tripping across the USA with her husband Lee, and spending time with her family exploring the plethora of local gardens and arboreta, most of the time while wearing high heels. She was a phenomenal listener, a kind and gentle soul, a wonderful mother, and a loving and devoted wife. 

She was predeceased by her parents, her brother, and her son, Gregory Scott Clemens, and is survived by her beloved husband, Lee W. Bruder of Emmaus; her children, Keith Clemens and Sarah Clemens Reed; and three grandchildren. 

A funeral service will be planned at the Egner Memorial Chapel at Muhlenberg College in the near future. 

In lieu of flowers, donations can be made to the National Museum of Industrial History, Bethlehem; Dementia Friendly Lehigh Valley; or Peace Evangelical Lutheran Church, King of Prussia.