Characters of the Village

Susan Soler Nascimento, Inspirational Educator and Author

By Joy and Brian Pape

Keith Michael, our popular contributor who writes about birds in The Village View, recommended his friend, Susan Soler Nascimento, to be a Character of the Village.

According to the website for her new book, Flowers for Nana, “With over 40 years of experience in early childhood education, Susan Soler Nascimento is a veteran and pillar of NYC public schools. Her classroom in the Village was a leading space for hands-on, child-centered education that fostered creativity and a love of learning. She is a people person, problem solver, calendar and quote collector, guide, wife, mother, Nana and friend.”

The book is about how “beauty and connection bloom when children share their interests and loves across generations. Flowers for Nana is a heartwarming story about a grandchild who wants to connect with a grandparent.”

Here’s what Soler Nascimento had to say during out recent interview.

What brought you to the Village?
My whole life has been in Manhattan. I love the Village and consider myself a lucky native New Yorker. I grew up with my parents on East 10th Street in the East Village. I had a great view of the East River where I saw interesting people like Astronaut John Glenn, JFK, Khruschev and Castro because my teachers took us out to see all those people going to the U.N.

I moved to the West Village Houses in 1976 as an original tenant. My dear friend had just come to New York and we were looking for an apartment together — actually, she was looking because I was working — when she said, “You gotta see this apartment.” One of my best memories was standing there with the keys to my first place, hardly believing I was living in the Village. There was affordable housing in the West Village then. I was 24.

I started working in education and then we had a baby. I decided to stay home for five years, poor, but it was important to be home. I came to P.S. 3 in 1992 where I had an amazing experience teaching for over 24 years. My students explored all that the Village had to offer. I taught pre-KK, then K and 1st and then just K.

I had the opportunity to test the waters of the Hudson River for 15 years with my class. Every month we tested and recorded the temperature, salinity, and oxygen level. We saw how the river changes each month using equipment that the scientists use.

Now that you are retired, what is your engagement with the Village?
I’m a tour guide and I belong to the Guide Association in New York City. I developed a stroller tour on Downing Street and tour of River to River on 10th Street. I’m also a docent at the Bronx Zoo and a published author. When I became a grandmother/nana seven years ago, I was inspired to write my first children’s book, Flowers for Nana. I just read it to six classes at my beloved P.S. 3. Between book appearances, I like being around, learning and exploring the Village, volunteering at the Bronx Zoo, and visiting with my grandchildren in Tacoma, WA.

Building on my career, I am hopeful this book will be another way to encourage children to pursue their dreams, while also fostering connections between generations. My husband, Tobias, teaches Portuguese at FIT, the New School, and the Borough of Manhattan Community College. My current goals include learning to swim, visiting a zoo in every state, and seeing my grandchildren graduate college.

Tell us about your passion.
My passion is to interact with people, giving them smiles, flowers and “good mornings” as I walk around the neighborhood. I love children, flowers, books and the Hudson River. I love to read to the kids and we make flowers together. I listen to books so I can walk by the river. I love listening to books because I love hearing the voices. And I just finished listening to Theo of Golden, written by Allen Levi, and The Correspondent, written by Virginia Evans.

What are your favorite restaurants?
Oscar’s Place, 466 Hudson St., Emmet’s on Grove, 39 Grove St. ─ which used to be Lederhosen German Wurst & Bierhaus, and before that it was a theater where our daughter had two birthday parties. For pizza, John’s Pizza, 278 Bleecker St. and Joe’s Pizza, 7 Carmine St. There have been so many changes in the Village, it’s hard to keep up.

What is your favorite place in the Village?
St. Luke’s Garden is my happy place. I take books out of the library and I sit and I read there. It’s the intergenerational connections of meeting people. I talk to anybody who is in my area and to the people who stop to talk to me.

Parting words?
I want to encourage my neighbors of the West Village to stop, look around and practice a moment of kindness each day. This will bring them joy.

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Learn more — flowersfornana.com