Stephanie Sandy

Stephanie Lynne Dawes Sandy passed away Tuesday afternoon, June 10, 2014, at Magnolia Regional Health Center in her adopted hometown of Corinth, Mississippi. Her “two boys” were beside her.

Stephanie Sandy lived her life as an idealist with an irrepressible drive to fulfill her core values of purpose, propriety, character and duty. Born on June 5, 1946, to Violet and Morgan “Jimmy” James Dawes in Washington, DC, she spent her childhood growing up with her two brothers Randy and Steve along the Anacostia River in the nearby Maryland suburbs. She picked her mother bouquets of wild violets along the river and enjoyed frequent family picnics which opened her eyes to the great outdoors.

Stephanie first came to Mississippi in the Fall of 1964 to enroll at Blue Mountain College in Tippah County. While at Blue Mountain, she met her future husband, the first of her “two boys”, Milton Larrimore Sandy, Jr. Her college education was interrupted but she would date her future husband until December 24, 1969 when she accepted his proposal for marriage. They married May 23, 1970, at Christ United Methodist Church in Washington, DC.

After marriage, Stephanie moved with her husband to Corinth in 1970. She returned to Blue Mountain College and received her BA degree in history in 1971. She always remarked that she loved her husband's “sense of place” and devoted the rest of her life to documenting Corinth's history as a legacy for future generations. She was impressed with the amount of local history which had been passed down orally, but was dismayed it had never been documented in a proper, lasting and permanent manner.

After graduation, Stephanie began a lifelong passion for historical research and genealogy. In 1973, she became the youngest Certified Genealogical Record Searcher (CGRS) in the United States and the first in Mississippi. She worked as a free lance genealogical researcher traveling to the National Archives, Mormon Genealogical Library, five Southern State Archives, city libraries, cemeteries, and numerous county courthouses. She specialized in Northeast Mississippi historical research with an emphasis on the early history of Corinth and old Tishomingo county.

During the renovation of the Alcorn County Courthouse, she helped organize the remaining records of old Tishomingo County. She worked with the Mississippi Department of Archives and History to microfilm newspapers and records missing from their collection. She learned the intricacies of property record deed research and that along with census records formed a hallmark of all her future research work. She always credited Chancery Clerk Jack Holt, Attorney Joe Burge Mitchell, and Surveyor Bobby Scott with gracing her with that knowledge to serve her lifework of research.

She applied her research skills to her husband's family home at 1106 Cruise Street in Corinth by identifying it on the historic Miller Sketches, proving and documenting its history and construction in 1857, and making it one of the oldest documented antebellum houses in Corinth, though she would regret the additions over the years that compromised its historical integrity. The Sandy family had lived in the house since 1945 without ever knowing its history or its age.

Before the invention of word processors or personal computers, Stephanie began a process of working in the basement of the Courthouse manually abstracting old newspapers for historical information. After the invention of personal computers, she indexed these early newspaper abstracts and published local abstracts in the Northeast Mississippi Genealogical Quarterly and as a local feature called “Corinth Clippings” in the Daily Corinthian.

Stephanie became a member of the Board of Corinth Theater Arts during a tumultuous period in the early 1970's as well as co-directed several productions with her friend Katherine Hill. She served as Secretary of the Corinth Bicentennial Commission in 1976 and served as a trustee of the Northeast Mississippi Museum Association.

On May 21, 1978, Stephanie gave birth to her son, David Milton Sandy, the second of her “two boys”.

Stephanie considered her son her “masterwork” and a source of joy and pride throughout her life. She devoted much time reading aloud to her son and taking he and his cousins on educational trips and excursions. She worked tirelessly to instill her core values in him so he would grow up a proper Southern Gentleman.

Stephanie had an extraordinary love for children and believed they held the keys to the future. She became involved with the local HORIZON educational organization and while serving on the board, developed a program which solicited parent support and donations to provide special computer labs called VIVARIUMS which resulted in over 700 computers with a lab at every elementary and high school in both the city and county school systems. During this time period, she became known as the “computer lady” to many students at South Corinth Elementary School where she volunteered as a computer instructor. She often recalled that these projects were some of the happiest times of her life, as she could see the difference she made in the lives of children.

In 1990, Mayor Edward Bishop requested Stephanie's help with the reorganization of the Corinth Historical Commission which became the Corinth Preservation Commission. She served as the first Chairman from 1990-1994. During this time period, along with a consultant, she did most of the survey and historical research to establish Corinth's two historic districts. Under her direction the original Corinth Preservation Ordinance was passed. She became the Certified Local Government Coordinator for the City of Corinth in 1990 and filled that position for 24 years. The Certified Local Government program made possible the grants which led to formation of the Siege and Battle of Corinth Commission. Over the years she served on its board and in an advisory capacity. Stephanie considered herself blessed to have lived to see her vision of Corinth recognized as a unique small town with a sense of history and true “sense of place”.

Stephanie served as a member of the Board of Directors of the Mississippi Historical Society from 1992-1995 and as a trustee of the Mississippi Heritage Trust from 1994-1997. On October 16, 2009, the Board of Trustees of the Mississippi Department of Archives and History commended Stephanie for her leadership in Corinth's Preservation movement and recognized her as a “tireless researcher” whose original research helped determine the location of the nationally significant Contraband Camp in Corinth and led to the establishment of Corinth's downtown historic district. She wrote the successful application for Corinth to be selected as a “Preserve America City.”

From 1993-1995, she, along with her husband and son, completed the original local research that formed the basis for the Smithsonian biography of local pioneer aviator Roscoe Turner. During the past ten years, Stephanie's historical research formed the basis of successful efforts to document and discover the forgotten history of drainage in this community. She was particularly proud of that effort to put research to a very practical application helping to solve flooding problems.

Stephanie believed in the value of the written word and her unique voice will live on in the extensive notes, journals and written records she left showing her unique philosophy, values, love for her family, and sense of community. For forty years, Stephanie has been working on research to publish a written history of early Corinth, its founders and residents. Her last completed work was a chapter of that book as a biographical sketch of Hamilton Mask, credited as one of the two founders of Corinth. In February, she released that work to the Verandah Curlee House committee to aid in the extensive restoration work now being done.

Stephanie touched many lives and was shown extraordinary kindness by medical caregivers during the past nine weeks. She always greeted everyone she met with a smile and a bright “Hello”. She was asked in the hospital whether she was a “Yankee”. She replied quite succinctly that she was born South of the Mason-Dixon Line. Her family particularly would like to recognize and thank the medical caregivers at Ochsner Hospital, New Orleans, LA; the West Clinic in Corinth, Magnolia Regional Hospital in Corinth, and Tishomingo Manor Nursing and Rehab in Iuka, MS.

Despite her volunteer work, Stephanie dedicated herself to providing a loving home for her “two boys”. She prided herself on a spotless and organized house. She displayed extraordinary skills in the kitchen, self taught long before the Cooking Channel, always seeking perfection. She would often expand her repertoire by incorporating and perfecting dishes tried at restaurants and from her extensive cookbook collection. She spent a lifetime honing her tastes for foods and spices. Her pies were spoken of with awe for years afterward by those outside the family lucky enough to enjoy them. She taught her son to cook as he worked at her side starting around the age of 2.

Stephanie took great joy out of life and loved thunderstorms, simple but elegant jewelry, naps, reading, real vanilla, real butter (she only purchased one stick of margarine in her married life), birdwatching and gardening. Weeding in her garden was one of her greatest pleasures and she would sit on the ground, cross legged, for hours while weeding and arranging her plants in the company of her faithful cat, Kit Carson. Stephanie's taste in television ran almost exclusively to BBC historical period dramas. During one program, Stephanie and Milton noted the Irish term “Corker”, found that it designated something unique and extraordinary. They mutually agreed it was an accurate description of Stephanie.

Stephanie was preceded in death by her father, Morgan James Dawes of Gulfport, Mississippi and a paternal half-brother David J. Dawes, of Manchester, NH.

Survivors include her husband of 44 years and Corinth native, Milton Larrimore Sandy, Jr.; one son, David Milton Sandy of Memphis, Tennessee; her mother Violet Mattera Dawes of Holiday, Florida, a beloved aunt Ermelinda Mattera of Tarpon Springs, Florida, two brothers Stephen Michael Dawes of Chambersburg, Pennsylvania and Randel Bruce Dawes of Huntingtown, Maryland, and a paternal half-sister Michelle Dawes Boehm of Suwanee, Georgia.

Pallbearers are Charles Stafford, Bobby Scott, Bill Jackson, Sonny Boatman, Scotty Little, Van Hedges. Honorary pallbearers are Joe Duncan, Bobby Marolt, John Frame, John Mercier, Mike McEwen, Michael Boston and Woody Harrell.

Visitation will be from 1 p.m. to 2 p.m. Saturday, June 14, 2014, at McPeters Funeral Home in Corinth. Memorial services will begin at 2 p.m. in McPeters Chapel.

Should friends desire, memorial contributions may be made to the Verandah Curlee House, c/o Friends of The Siege and Battle of Corinth Commission, P.O.Box 45, Corinth, MS 38835; or the Mississippi Heritage Trust, PO Box 577, Jackson, MS 39205P.O. Box