Sandra Kay Halbur Hesse

Sandra Kay Halbur Hesse 1957-2010 Sandra (Sandy) Kay Halbur Hesse of Garden Grove, passed on July 5, 2010 after a long illness related to a heart condition. Born in Milwaukee on August 3, 1957, Sandy was the daughter of Clarence and Elizabeth Lemieux who preceded her in death. Sandy was very proud to have been the daughter of an Ojibwa mother and a French Canadian father. She was a determined and hard worker, starting as a grocery clerk at 15 and putting herself through Milwaukee's Mount Mary's College where in 1977, graduating as a journalism major. In 1978, Sandy moved to Long Beach and worked for the Press-Telegram for 4 years. She soon met and married Dave Hesse with whom she had two children; Daniel (23) and Elizabeth (22). In 1985, Sandy went to work for Stevedoring Services of America as a superintendent. Her various duties over 25 years included the loading and unloading of fruit, autos, roll-on/roll-off ships and double stack trains. Sandy was known for her professionalism, thoroughness and toughness tempered with compassion. Sandy possessed a quick, humorous, irreverent and off-centered wit, She reveled in butchering foreign languages: Japanese, Chinese or Spanish, it did not matter. Her straight-faced malapropisms included many intentionally mispronounced words, such as, "fajitters" for fajitas, "Dos X-E-Q's" for Dos XX's, "El Ka Jon Pass" for El Cajon and, for Shabu Shabu, she would quip "Sha Boo, Sha Boo". "Mackee Yackee" was another of her names for Maki Yaki. Sandy enjoyed a happy and close relationship for the last 12 years with her chosen partner, Paul Huot, who always impressed Sandy with his cooking skills. In accordance with her wishes for a simple funeral, no formal viewing or memorial service is planned, however, a large boat in Alamitos Bay has been arranged for the spreading of Sandy's ashes at sea on August 1, two days from what would have been her 53rd birthday.