Sandra Vee Conklin

Our beloved wife and mother, Sandra Vee Conklin, was born on January 15, 1940, in Charlotte, Michigan, and passed peacefully on December 14, 2025 in Grand Rapids, MI. She was truly one of a kind, a woman whose presence filled every room with laughter and warmth.
She was the heart of every holiday, hosting big family gatherings where contagious laughter and joyful memories were always made. A straight shooter through and through, she believed that right was right and wrong was wrong. Sandy was kind, fair, trustworthy, and someone you could always count on in times of need. She loved to joke, always kept candy nearby, and found deep joy in birdwatching, nature, and the purity of life itself.
Strong-willed and steadfast, she lived with conviction and loved deeply. Sandy enjoyed playing games like Sequence, Set Back, and Euchre and many treasured family moments were spent gathered around tables filled with laughter and competition. A loving mother and devoted wife, her love for her family showed in all she did. She worked hard and loved even harder.
The oldest of ten children, she learned early the value of resilience and responsibility. She met the love of her life, Allen, at the age of eleven. Even then, their bond was unmistakable as he would walk miles to see her on the farm and help her ride her beloved horse. They married on April 16, 1978, and shared decades of cherished memories such as time spent by the creek searching for rocks, fishing, hunting, camping, trips to the Upper Peninsula, Canada, Lake Gogebic, and Hardy Dam, as well as many memorable casino trips. Nearly everyone who knew her carries a special memory of time spent with her during these moments.
Sandy is survived by her loving husband, Allen Conklin; her children, Julia (Jim) Rummelt, Jodi (Phil) Mendham, Margaret Stoken, Patricia (Greg) Martin, Dalynne (Jim) Preston, Koral (Chet) Pfishner, Darren Conklin, and Mike (Denise) Conklin; and more than 70 grandchildren, great-grandchildren, and great-great-grandchildren.
She is also survived by her siblings, Linda Wood, Dan (Connie) Wood, Leon (Mary) Wood, Bruce (Marsha) Wood, Becky (Bruce) Zgoda, Loren (Amy) Wood, Renee (Kevin) Kole, and Eric (Gwen) Wood.
Sandy was preceded in death and welcomed into Heaven by her parents, Lewis and Athol Wood; her brother, Burr Wood; and her beloved sons, Gregory Stoken, James "Jumbo" Stoken, and Chad Stoken.
Honoring Sandy and Allen's wishes, a celebration of life will be held at a later date. A private gathering for immediate family has been planned.
In lieu of flowers, memorial donations may be made in her honor to Corewell Hospice.