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Sandy Shaw Patterson was fond of the humorous phrase about “skidding broadside into the grave,” totally spent, but happy. She got her wish. She would say, “Wow, what a ride!”
Sandy was born in Chicago in 1938 to Viola Curler Shaw and Jerry B. Shaw. After years in Wisconsin, and weary of the weather, the family moved to Jacksonville, Fla. There she met her husband, Jim. They moved to Charlotte, N.C. and had two boys — Pat and Mark — but the call of sunny Florida tugged at Sandy. In 1980, she settled in Vero Beach and enjoyed a lengthy career in real estate at The Moorings. Later, she began a successful remodeling/renovation business, which she operated until 2021.
Sandy frequently said she lived her passion, and she delighted in the ability to visualize her clients’ wishes and make them a reality. She peppered a hectic business life with visits to Europe and annual treks to New York City to enjoy Broadway shows and savor exotic restaurants. The experiences fed her hobbies of cooking and gardening.
Her nurturing approach is most self-evident in her grandchildren, Isabella and Samuel. He describes his abuella as “determined and compassionate,” and remembers how carefully she planned their visits to include beach time, airboat rides and culinary experiences. “I know she will watch over me in all my life’s endeavors.” Isabella says Sandy “taught me what it means to forge my own path, to be independent, and to persevere.”
Her son, Mark, started a “victory garden” of vegetables and flowers inspired by Sandy’s love of nature. I like to imagine “she wakes up to new blooms every morning,” he smiles.
Sandy is survived by her sons, James M. “Pat” and Mark R. Patterson; her sister and brother-in-law, Stacey Shaw and Dale Thomas; daughter-in-law, Irania Patterson; grandchildren, Anna Isabella and Samuel Yran Patterson; and an enormous circle of caring friends. She was predeceased by her parents and her fellow foodie sister Christine “Teena” Shaw Jackson with whom she often entertained and had adventures. A Celebration of Sandy’s Life will be held at a later date. Donations in Sandy’s honor can be made to VNA Hospice House of Vero Beach.
Arrangements are by Thomas S. Lowther Funeral Home & Crematory, Vero Beach.
© 2024 Lowther Funeral Home. All Rights Reserved.
Hatha - Friend since late 1980’s.
August 18, 2021, 5:33 pm
I met Sandy when I was a secretary to an attorney who worked with the Moorings in the middle eighties. Sandy was one of my favorite people. She was kind, caring and devoted to her friends. Hatha Artz Brown