Sara Vandierdonck

Sara "Sally" Nancy Vandierdonck (nee Horn) Sally was born August 10, 1948 in Marysville, Ohio. She attended Marysville High School and Ohio Wesleyan where she majored in English. After college she moved to Detroit taking a job as a Corporate Cash Management Specialist, beginning a thirty year career in that field. It was also in Detroit that Sally met her future husband Michael Vandierdonck. Sally and Mike moved to Oakland California in 1986 where they lived in a light-filled home that suited Sally's love of life and sunshine. Sally was "one helluva broad" as many of her friends called her, a woman whose favorite two words were "go" and "do." Her love of fun, laughter and joy defined every aspect of her life. She was a yearly fixture at the Burning Man Festival and traveled all over the world including places such as Maui, China. India, New Zealand, Spain, Vietnam, and wherever she could find water and sunshine. One of Sally's favorite sayings was, "Never waste a sunny day." She never did. She lived life to its absolute fullest. She kept friendships for life, and treasured those friendships with genuine love and loyalty. Sally had a special love for her chocolate labs Lakota and Cocoa, and greyhound Tyrone. She loved knitting and reading, often buying endless stacks of books at Mrs. Dalloway's, then turning around and donating them to libraries where she volunteered as a literacy coach. She also loved all kinds of music from classical to ZZ Top. Sally originally entered the hospital in February of 2009 with flu-like symptoms, which soon turned infectious and kept her hospitalized through the spring. In the hospital, as she battled the worst part of her illness, her iPod was constantly attached to her ears. Her bed was surrounded by cascades of flowers, cards, pictures, books, special mementoes, and loving friends. By fall, she believed that she had beaten the illness. Sally fought a valiant battle with infections and abdominal problems that ultimately caused her sudden and unexpected death on Monday morning, March 8, 2010. Sally is predeceased by her parents, Edith Haycock Horn and Jon Searles Horn. She is survived by her husband and innumerable close friends who will miss her every day of their lives. Donations can be sent in Sally's name to the following organizations: The Marin Mammal Center 2000 Bunker Road, Fort Cronkhite, Sausalito, CA 94965, members@tmmc.org; Berkeley Humane Society, Berkeley CA 2700 Ninth Street, Berkeley CA 94710, (510) 845-7735 ext.35; Second Start Adult Literacy, Oakland Public Library, 1801 Adeline Street, Oakland, CA 94607, (510)238-3432. Sally's memorial will be held on April 10th, 1:00 pm, at the Jack London Aquatic Center, 115 Embarcadero, Oakland Ca 94606, http://www.jlac.org