Sandra "Sandy" J. Wandrych, formerly of Manistee, passed away on March 12, 2022, peacefully at home, under hospice care, after a culmination of legacy illnesses finally caught up with her. She was 80 years old. Born in Manistee, Sandy was the daughter of the late Earl "Pug" Johnson and the late Thelma "Toby" (Morris) Johnson with the couple coming back to Manistee, after spending some years in Grand Rapids, and making it their retirement home. Sandy assumed the matriarch role of the Johnson family lineage when her older brother, Robert Johnson, passed away in December of 2020. Her youngest brother, David "Beaver" Johnson, passed away in August of 2015.
Sandy was a 1959 graduate of Manistee High School where many of her long-term friendships were cultivated. As a result of that, Sandy was on the '59 Class Reunion Committee working on more recent events with friends. During her years at MHS, she participated in various activities and clubs which included, but not limited to, Cheerleader all four years (making Captain her Senior year), Drama Club (Junior & Senior years), Choir (Freshman and Senior years) and Layout Editor for the "Chippewa Herald" (Senior year).
Not one to be shy about anything, there was never a challenge too big. When there wasn't a pre-school in Manistee for her twin sons, she started one at The United Methodist Church a place where she also taught Bible school. To expand on her singing interest she started "The Free Spirit" singing group of Manistee that still performs today. When there was a need for a Girl Scout Camp Director, she (being a past Girl Scout herself) took on the role. When the posting of the first Civil Defense Director of Manistee County came out, she applied and got the job taking on the responsibility of creating a responsive disaster plan for various events including nuclear war. She took a lead position with a group of women to push Title IX through a reluctant Manistee Board of Education which opened, among other benefits, equal opportunity for girls to participate in school athletics. After taking classes at West Shore Community College, she registered with the Michigan High School Athletic Association (MHSAA) to referee basketball becoming the first female referee in Michigan to referee a boy's high school game. Her volunteerism was endless and saying "No" to a needy request was not in her vocabulary.
Sandy's early employment consisted of working the counter at Manistee Laundry & Dry Cleaners during her high school years. The Monday following high school graduation, she went to work at Manistee Century Boat as a switchboard (PBX) operator. Excelling in shorthand and typing in high school, she was snatched from the Century Boat gig and hired to be the secretary to the Department Head at Consumers Power on Arthur Street. She transitioned within the company to become the secretary for the Head of Personnel & Safety. Part of her assignment with Consumers was dressing up (a gown budget was provided) and riding on the company's float in the 4th of July parade where she was paid triple time! When the twins were born, she left Consumers Power and became a successful Avon sales representative building her customer base going door to door in her territory. Her work with Avon earned her numerous limited edition achievement awards.
Sandy had the love for the theater especially her time with the Manistee Civic Players at the historic Ramsdell Theater. As expected, Sandy did whatever was needed by the group from working the box office to Directing memorable productions. Among her stage roles were Mrs. Sowerberry (undertakers' wife) in "Oliver!", Julie in "Showboat" and whirling about the stage (on the shoulders of Al Garber hidden under her long, haunting dress) as Fruma Sarah in "Fiddler on the Roof". When the country's bicentennial celebration was at hand in 1976, the Manistee Civic Players prepared to celebrate the occasion by performing the musical "1776". Sandy took on the Producer-Director roles to guide the production to the stage. Under her leadership, she knew her biggest challenge for the show was finding 25 male voices in the area who weren't afraid of being on stage. Knowing this, she prepared by holding tryouts many months ahead of time rather than the traditional weeks. She got what she needed (casting completed in February for a June show) and put on a well received production. When life was about to take her away from Manistee, the Manistee Civic Player presented Sandy a plaque for her many years of tireless work with the group.
On February 25, 1978, Sandy married Jim Wandrych of Manistee with services being held at the Manistee Congregational Church. The couple, along with their 3 sons Noel, Joel and Adam Priester, began to venture as a family where circumstances took them away from Manistee. The family moved to West Bend, Wisconsin where after a year, another opportunity took them to the Seattle, Washington area. It was there that Sandy embarked on another passion—education. For her 38th birthday Sandy fulfilled the dream of going to college enrolling at Highline Community College in Des Moines, Washington. She obtained her Associates Degree in Psychology. During her two years there she also worked at the Women's Resource Center aiding female students with curriculum guidance. Sandy continued her education enrolling at the University of Washington where she earned her Bachelor of Arts degree with honors majoring in Psychology with a minor in Women Studies. While attending school she also worked at Scientific Instruments, an on campus company.
After nearly 6 years in the Seattle region, another opportunity took the family to the Columbus, Ohio area where the couple eventually settled in Powell, Ohio and have lived the past 19 years. Noel & Joel live nearby in downtown Columbus. Adam's travels have him residing in Lacey, Washington with his wife Noni and two grandchildren Rachel and Ben. In Ohio, Sandy's working career continued and blossomed. She landed her first local job working for Choices, a shelter for women of domestic violence. There she developed a program and trained doctors on how to deal with women who were victims of domestic violence. It was also at Choices that Sandy developed a Domestic Violence program in an attempt to help curb the violence. By invitation through the Ohio Department of Corrections (DOC), she gave her presentation to the male prisoner population at various institutions to hopefully, through awareness, stem the problem. This effort caught the eye of someone within the DOC and encouraged Sandy to apply for a position with the State at The Ohio Reformatory for Women (ORW), the only women's prison at the time. Sandy was hired at ORW as a social worker handling a massive caseload from minimum to death row sentenced women. Though she was a social worker, she passed the State of Ohio firearms certification with a "Marksman" classification. She attributed this to her dad taking her hunting in her early years and teaching her the ropes in the handling of a weapon.
After 10 years with ORW, another opportunity came along, and Sandy was hired by the State of Ohio's Department of Drug and Alcohol Addiction Services. There she served as Regional Planner for Northeast Ohio which include Cuyahoga County, home to Cleveland. She represented the purse strings for the State of Ohio. Her responsibility was to audit the various Alcohol, Drug and Mental Health (ADAMH) Boards in her region to see if they complied with all the requirements in obtaining State funding for the upcoming period. She held this position until illness forced her into early retirement.
Afterwards Sandy's focused on her health and the health of her family. She continued some volunteer work serving on the Board of Franklin County (Columbus) National Alliance for the Mentally Ill (NAMI).
Sandy's interests were reading, singing, swimming (First St. beach summers were the best!), going to movies (they never made enough), driving and going for rides, eating out, live theater and rock concerts (the Stones were her fav). It was common to travel to cities within driving distance (Cincinnati, Cleveland, Pittsburgh, Nashville, St. Louis and Indianapolis) to catch a live show.
She participated playing sports throughout her life. Without Michigan sanctioned girls' sports in high school, she did participate as a member of the Girls Athletic Association (GAA) where intramural sports were available. As an adult, she played for the women's fast pitch team for Free Soil and women's softball team for Manistee Bank & Trust. She played golf and participated in numerous team tournaments along the way.
Sandy was a treasure to many without them even knowing it. You can see through this narrative the lives she touched along the way that may have improved theirs or given opportunities that may not have existed before. A girl scout, a female high school athlete, a female returning to school, a stagehand, a prisoner and more may have what they have today through what Sandy did with her life.
Her husband Jim knew what he had. An equal, loving partner that truly was one of a kind and will be deeply missed.
A funeral service for Sandy will be held on Saturday March 26, 2022, at 11:00 AM at Oak Grove Funeral Home in Manistee. Family will receive friends Friday evening from 5:00 PM until 7:00 PM and again on Saturday morning from 10:00 AM until the time of service.
Please feel free to share a memory or photo with Sandy's family at www.oakgrovefh.com.
The family has entrusted funeral arrangements with Oak Grove Funeral Home & Cremation Center of Manistee.