Sandy Hoffer

Sandy had two special loves in her life: her love for her daughters, and her love for nursing-and she put them in that order. Her daughters came before everything, but it was certainly everyone-from family members to patients-who enjoyed Sandy 's skillful, compassionate care, not to mention her smile and distinctive laughter that came from a place deep within her.

Sandy's mother, Tressa Speese, gave birth to her in Mancelona, Michigan on October 31, 1910. Mancelona was a quiet farm town surrounded by fields, trees, and steep hills that piled high with snow in the winter. Sandy and her brother, Clifford, grew up there, never failing to make it through the field that sat between their house and the school building just before the second bell rang. Cliffy proved himself to be a typical older brother. He teased his little sister relentlessly, and when the opportunity arose to give her a hard time about something-like her name-he took it. Sandy , too, never liked her given name, which was Violet. Thankfully her mother wasn't too upset when young Violet announced she'd rather be called by her middle name, Sandy . Everyone agreed that it suited her well.

When she was in her teens, Sandy moved to Grand Rapids to continue her schooling at South High School. She would later be proud that one of the students in the school, just two years younger than her, would become President: Gerald Ford. Despite her admittedly imperfect voice, she excitedly joined the choir and ended up enjoying it quite a bit. But before Sandy knew it graduation came, as did the question of what she should do next. Uncertain, she decided that the one thing she knew was that she wanted to stay in school, so she began taking classes at Grand Rapids Junior College . While she was a successful student, Sandy knew she just wasn't meant to be a secretary. Instead she decided to follow in the footsteps of her Aunt Mary and apply to Mary Louise Withey School of Nursing at Blodgett Memorial Hospital . Questions like "Will I even like nursing?" kept circling through Sandy 's mind, but it didn't take more than a couple of classes for her to find the answers she sought. Nursing wasn't just something she liked; it was her passion-the thing she was meant to do.

While attending nursing school, a friend introduced Sandy to George E. Hoffer. George was smitten by Sandy. Sandy was beautiful, smart, and one of those people who acted like a magnet at the center of the room, attracting everyone's attention but completely unaware that she even possessed that power. Sandy and George dated and later married, and after graduating from nursing school in 1937, Sandy began working as a Registered Nurse at Blodgett Hospital . Being a time in history when nurses acted as the unequivocal backbone of the hospital, Sandy did it all-from sterilizing instruments, to cleaning beds, to providing all of the patient care. In the Med-Surg unit particularly, Sandy learned from a variety of experiences and used her knowledge to continually better herself as a nurse. In fact Sandy did so well that the hospital soon promoted her to night supervisor. She excelled. Sandy became popular for her skills as much as her kind smile. Whenever a VIP was admitted, the doctors never failed to assign Sandy to their care.

A couple years into marriage, Sandy and George decided they were ready to start a family. Their daughter Carol arrived first, followed by Mary a few years later. For Sandy , motherhood was not a duty to be taken lightly; it was a privilege. She knew she wanted to be at home with her children for their first few years, so she left nursing and made motherhood her entire focus. To begin, she decided to start running the house in a meticulous manner. Her home never failed to be immaculately clean and, in essence, perfect. Sandy knew how she wanted things, and that's simply the way they were. The kitchen emitted the most delicious smells, as Sandy loved cooking traditional meals like meat and potatoes (she loved potatoes). Baking never interested her much, but she did have a soft spot for something she never made: shrimp. As for her parenting, Sandy never left any doubt that she was in charge of the children. As a woman with many experiences under her belt, Sandy had seen a variety of negative things in the world and didn't want her children subjected to any of them. Because of this she may have been a little too strict-she even set a curfew for her daughter when she came to town for her 20th high school class reunion!

Whatever the restrictions, Sandy 's concern for the girls was never interpreted as anything but a sign of her affection for them. They were the most important people in her life and their needs first came first. Sandy knew this better than anyone. She made sure Carol and Mary had everything they needed before she would even consider herself. Like most mothers, Sandy spent her fair share of time worrying too. The thought of something happening to either of the girls was just too much to imagine. And so it was that Sandy stayed active in her daughters' lives attentively, even joining the PTA. Naturally there were many fun times over the years, like the annual family vacations to New York. Sandy, George, and the girls would always stay with Aunt Mary on Lake Oneida near Syracuse (where Sandy 's aunt lived) and spend a couple of weeks relaxing there.

Sandy 's love and attentiveness for her daughters came first, then came her love of nursing. She did some work for a pediatrician, Dr. Holcomb, while the girls were very young. After Carol and Mary started school she wanted to work more, but at the same time she wanted to make sure she was home to welcome the girls at the end of the day. St. Mary's Hospital, thankfully, agreed to work with Sandy 's schedule. She joined the Obstetrics unit. Everyone there took to Sandy immediately. They offered her full-time job but, of course, Sandy declined because she wanted to be home. As the girls got older, however, they again offered the full-time position and Sandy jumped at it.

The Obstetrics unit became a home away from home. Sandy loved her work and her coworkers and never failed to enjoy both. Everyone who worked with Sandy appreciated the fun she brought to the environment. Eventually, Sandy 's skills and attitude made her the head nurse of Obstetrics. She was always on the cutting edge of prenatal education. Though she did not like public speaking, her job obligated her to speak at the first prenatal classes. She decided to just be herself and take a tell-it-like-it-is approach. She alerted first time fathers to an important fact, saying, "You will no longer be the baby in the family." She warned them, "Don't be afraid of the baby - you are not going to break the baby." And she summed everything up by reminding them, "That's how you started."

However hesitant she might have been to speak in front of a crowd, Sandy was a real people person. She spoke easily and with straightforward eloquence. This tone made people feel comfortable with her right away, like she was a familiar part of their family. Sandy remained at St. Mary's as the head nurse of Obstetrics until she retired in 1976. Not surprisingly though, she didn't stop working after that. She had loved nursing at St. Mary's and had fallen in love with the people there, and now she felt like it was time to return to her nursing roots at Blodgett. Sandy , as a volunteer, returned to the hospital, where she recorded more that 1000 hours of volunteer service. She was also active in the Withey Guild, the Women's Senior Board, and the Bissell Guild of Blodgett Memorial (serving in various officer positions, including president).

Over the years, friends and family enjoyed getting to know all of Sandy 's quirks and characteristics, like the fact that she loved to laugh. She had a great laugh too, one that came from deep within her. She liked to dance as well. Really, anything Sandy did attracted people's attention. She was simply captivating in every way. Her beauty matched the attractiveness of her personality- Sandy always looked a good 20 years younger than her contemporaries did. Wherever she went and whatever she did, Sandy drew people to her. And from there, her stories and good nature drew them into her life.

Even after George passed away in 1984, Sandy remained fiercely independent. While she could have moved closer to her daughters (now living in other states), she would have none of it. She wanted to be at home, in the place that held so many wonderful memories for her. Ellie Estes, Sandy 's dear neighbor, became one of her closest friends. Sandy was always so thankful and appreciative for her company. They would talk about everything under the sun, including the fact that Sandy was a staunch republican, and proud of it.

In 2001, the health problems that had (thankfully) eluded Sandy for the majority of her life began to catch up with her. She had to give up driving. Shortly thereafter, she moved south to live with her daughter Mary and son-in-law Joe, in Tampa, Florida. Joe was treated as the son she never had. Things started looking up at one point, and Sandy seized the chance to return to Michigan for about 6 months. Eventually, though, she knew she needed the additional care Mary could provide, so returned to Florida . Sandy spent her days being remarkably impressed by Mary's cooking, and doing a lot of reading as well. Sandy was a ferocious reader in fact-picking up anything having to do with American history or poetry. Of course, she spent a fair amount of time reading up on the newest advances in medicine and nursing as well. Just because Sandy knew the up-and-coming practices didn't mean she always agreed with them. She never shied away from letting everyone know exactly what she thought.

As a grandmother, Sandy formed a special bond with every one of her grandchildren and great grandchildren. They called her Grams. She often played cards with Joey, and enjoyed visits from the Angie when Angie was in college. Joey, Angie, and all the kids were taken aback by their Gram's energy. It seemed like she did everything in fast-forward motion-doing it remarkably well at the same time.

Not until later in life-when Sandy would get stopped at the grocery store by people who, years after she'd cared for them, would thank her for the care they received-did Sandy realize how much she had touched other people. Her daughters, too, thank their mother for all the love they received. They are grateful that they could care for her in her later years just as she had done for them so many times before. Sandy's family, friends, and patients were all blessed to know her. They will remember the warmth of her smile, the depth of her laughter, and loving embrace of her care forever.

Violet S. (Sandy) Hoffer, 95, passed away at her daughter's home in Tampa, Florida on December 11, 2005. Predeceased by her husband, George E. Hoffer, in 1984, she is survived by daughters Carol A. Hoffer of Chicago and Mary Hills and husband Joseph H. Hills of Tampa; two grandchildren Joseph H. Hills Jr. (Joey) Tampa; Angela (Angie) Hills Veber and her husband Christopher Veber and two great grandchildren Hayden and Charlie Veber, all of Kenilworth, Illinois; as well as her special friend, Ellie Estes.

A service to celebrate Mrs Hoffer's life will be held at 11 AM on Friday, December 16 at Heritage Life Story Funeral Home - Alt & Shawmut Hills Chapel, 2120 Lake, Michigan Drive NW where relatives and friends are invited to meet with her family on Thursday from 7-9 PM and on Friday from 10 AM until the time of the service. Interment in Mt. Calvary Cemetery. To share a favorite memory, please visit www.lifestorynet.com.