Florence Suerig began her professional career as an interior designer and builder of homes.

After her son Michael died at the beginning of the AIDS pandemic, she and her husband Karl Suerig, a doctor in their community, decided to work toward helping survivors of the disease and to raise funds toward finding a cure. To this end, they founded the RED RIBBON FOUNDATION (originally called Jazz for AIDS). With the help of friends and, later, a hard-working board, they have endeavored to raise awareness of AIDS and to raise funds in Greenwich and surrounding communities.

After the foundation was underway, Florence resumed her artistic work first as an abstract quilt-maker and more recently sculpting in clay. She has two children, and her husband has three; between them they have fourteen grandchildren and three great-grandchildren. They reside in Greenwich.