Morris-Pearson, Sandra Lee
Sandra Lee Gardner ("Sandee") was born in Dayton, Ohio on May 17, 1941, to Joseph and Romilda Gardner, the second of three children and only daughter. At age four, Sandee took a ballet class for the first time and loved it. This would be her lifelong passion - dance. Sandee graduated from Centerville High School ready for the next chapter of her life. It seemed that marriage and two lively sons were next! Along with being a wife and mother, she spent her days growing a little dance studio into a bigger dance studio and the only dance supply shop in Centerville, Ohio. So many students know the five basic positions of ballet because of Sandee and her studio! She also taught tap, hula, tahitian, and jazz to name a few. Sandee also enjoyed spending time by water so she and her husband John, who she married in 1984, spent their time between their house in Miamisburg, Ohio and a cabin on Lake Cumberland, Kentucky. After years of traveling back and forth, they decided to retire and to give it all up for sunshine and a golf cart and moved to The Villages, Florida where they have lived for over fifteen years. Sandee kept herself busy with bridge, playing golf, volunteering at church, teaching ballet, and showing off her favorite dance routines as often as she could. Preceding Sandee is death were her parents (Joseph and Romilda Gardner), her older brother (Joseph Gardner Jr), her sister-in-law (Toni Gardner), and a grandson (Kiel Morris). She is survived by her husband (John Pearson), stepson and his wife (Andy and Sharon Pearson), a step granddaughter (Kabrina), a younger brother (William Gardner), four nephews (Eric, Patrick, Steven, Jay), and her two devoted sons, Jeffrey (Molly) Morris of South Carolina, and Jason (Gretchen) Morris of New Mexico. Sandee enjoyed being a grandma to her four grandsons, Nathan, Max, Henry, and Wyatt spending countless hours playing cards with them. She enjoyed time with her family but wasn't sure which one of her grandsons would want her collection of dancer figurines! For the last few years, Sandee had been losing her short-term memory only to develop acute health issues recently that took her life. She died comfortably in her bed at home, thanks to the loving care of her husband and the expert guidance of the Hospice nurses a few weeks shy of her 84th birthday. There will be a funeral service at St Vincent de Paul Catholic Church in Wildwood on Friday, May 23rd at 11:00am, with a small family service immediately following at the Florida National Cemetery in Bushnell at 1:30pm. Please do no send flower but consider a donation to Compassionate Care Hospice (Amedisys) in The Villages in her honor.
Morris-Pearson, Sandra
