Sandra Ewens 1938 - 2017

Sandra Ewens (Perry), 78, of Blue Springs, Missouri, passed away February 28, 2017 at her home at The Parkway Senior Living Apartments in Blue Springs.

Sandra (also known as "Sandy" by her friends and family) was born on November 19, 1938 in Kansas City, Missouri, to James H. Perry and Edith A. Perry (Winders), with one sibling, Marsha Liggett (Perry).

Sandy was married to William (Bill) Lee Ewens at Kensington Avenue Baptist Church in Kansas City, MO on September 28, 1963.

Prior to marriage, she earned her Bachelor of Arts at William Jewell College and received her Master of Social Work from the University of Kansas.

Sandy and Bill took up residence in East Lansing, Michigan, for over 30 years, where they had fulfuilling careers and adopted and raised two children, Jason Lee Ewens and Erin Lynn Brown (Ewens).

When Sandy was growing up, she lived a few blocks from her maternal grandparents, the Winders, and she would walk to their apartment after school. She stayed with them almost every weekend. She was very close to her grandmother, and the two of them loved to share stories about her mother, Edith. Her grandmother came to live with her when her grandfather died, and she loved having her there, spending a lot of time together. It was because of her that Sandy became a social worker. She wanted to work with seniors and help them be more active.

Sandy went to work for St. Vincent Catholic Charities where she would eventually become the director of the St. Vincent Home for Children in Lansing, Michigan until her retirement.

After the birth of her first granddaughter, Connor Kaylee Ewens, Sandy and Bill moved back to Kansas City to be closer to their family.

During the next few years Sandy's family would also welcome grandson Logan William Ewens, and granddaughters Marleigh Sophia Brown and Seraphina Kennedy Brown.

Although her daughter Erin's family lived in California, Oregon, and then Texas, she and Bill visited often. She was very excited when Erin and Frank moved to Singapore in 2015, and hoped that someday she would be able to visit, but sadly her health would never permit it.

One of Sandy's true joy's in life was being with her grandchildren and witnessing their accomplishments. She encouraged Connor and Logan to take music lessons, and would often offer to take them to class so that she could just listen to them sing and play. She traveled all the way to Texas to see Marleigh in her first recital, and she loved receiving videos of Marleigh and Seraphina practicing their Mandarin language, or dancing and singing. Because of Sandy's encouragement, Connor now works as a piano teacher at Meyer Music, and will be in the vocal department at Missouri State University next year. Logan plays two instruments in the band at Paul Kinder Middle School and plans to be in the Golden Regiment Marching Band at Blue Springs High School next year. Marleigh plays piano, dances, and is a world traveller. Seraphina also plays piano, does gymnastics, and loves math and science. Sandy was described by one of her close friends as "a truly wonderful, caring person - always ready to listen, support, and to laugh!"

After moving to Michigan in the 1960's, they returned home to celebrate Christmas with their family each year until they moved back to Missouri. Sandy loved visiting her parents, Jim and Edith, her sister Marsha Liggett, her brother-in-law Bob Liggett, and her niece and nephews Lori Worden, James Craig Liggett, and Brad Liggett. They went on many regular family vacations to the Amanas in Iowa and the Land Between the Lakes in Kentucky. She loved to travel, and after retiring she and Bill traveled with Marsha and Bob to many different cities across the United States, Europe, the Mediterranean, and the Caribbean. She and Bill also visited the USSR, Asia, and Australia. She was a true world traveler.

Sandy is survived by her husband William (Bill) Ewens of Blue Springs; her son Jason Ewens, and his wife, Darla of Blue Springs; her daughter, Erin Brown, and her husband Frank of Pratteln, Switzerland; her grandchildren, Connor Ewens, Logan Ewens, Marleigh Brown, and Seraphina Brown; her sister, Marsha Liggett and her husband Robert Liggett of Lee's Summit; her niece and nephews, Lori Worden, James Craig Liggett, Brad Liggett, their spouses Phil Worden, and Diana Liggett, and their children, Perry Worden, Victoria Liggett, Chandler Liggett, Olivia Liggett, and Ainsley Liggett.

Sandy was preceded in death by her parents, James H. Perry and Edith A. Perry.

Should friends desire, contributions may be sent to the Stowers Institute for Medical Research, 1000 E 50th St. Kansas City MO, 64110 www.stowers.org/support.

A Memorial will be held at 11:00 a.m. on Saturday, March 4, 2017, at All Souls Unitarian Universalist Church, 4501 Walnut St, Kansas City, Missouri 64111