Sandra B. Connell

On Friday, October 29th, Sandra Josephine Brown Connell passed away with family by her side, after a brief battle with cancer. Sandra was born in Lyons, GA to Jack Lawson Brown and Ethlyn Goodwin. She attended Lyons High School, Emory University, and after marrying Thurman C. (Sam) Connell, graduated from the University of Florida with a degree in Education. Sandra and Sam had two daughters, Stephanie Lynn Connell, and Jennifer Connell Dowling. After living in the Atlanta area for many years, raising her daughters and focusing on her family, she moved to Des Moines, IA, where she created new friends and connections by serving on the house advisory board for the Kappa Kappa Gamma sorority at Drake University. She also worked for a small retail store that carried everything from fine china for brides to everyday accessories for making a house feel like a home, and through that discovered and shared her own sense of style in interior decorating – one that was always classic, with a bit of panache, and always focused on being welcoming and putting others at ease. Along the way, she demonstrated once and for all to her Mid-Western friends that Southerners can indeed learn anything they put their mind to – even learning how to drive in the snow. After her marriage ended, she decided to relocate to the Washington, DC area to be near her children. Once again showing her willingness to accept new challenges, Sandra moved to Old Town, Alexandria, where she was an active participant in activities such as the Old Town Walled Garden Club. She loved learning from friends and loved truly listening to others as they shared their histories and life adventures. She also continued her interest in interior decorating, working at The Pineapple and Reunions in Alexandria. Her final leap of faith led her to buy a house in the Ashton Heights neighborhood of Arlington, VA rather than moving to a retirement community, so that she could be closer to her children and just a few blocks away from her grandchildren so that she could be an even more active participant in their lives. Once again, she built friendships and community with her kind and welcoming ways. In addition to her daughters, Sandra is survived by her sister Susan Threlkeld, brother-in-law Larry Threlkeld, two grandchildren Quincy Susannah Dowling and Kylie Brown Dowling, her son-in-law Nick Dowling, her niece Anna Threlkeld Bring, and her nephew Paul Hughes Threlkeld, along with their families. A memorial service to celebrate Sandra’s life will be held at the Clarendon United Methodist Church, 600 N. Irving Street, Arlington, VA 22201 at 11am on Monday, November 29, 2021. (Masks are required.) The service will also be livestreamed from the CUMC website, www.clarendonumc.org. A separate service for family will be held in Vidalia, GA on Saturday, December 4, 2021.

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Sandra B. Connell

August 18, 1941 - October 29, 2021