Sandra Lee Latimer

Sandra Lee Latimer, age 75, passed away on Monday, August 19, 2019 at Doctors Hospital West.

Sandi Latimer was an award-winning writer. She wrote four books and each won "outstanding" in the Columbus, Ohio, Parks and Recreation Arts and Crafts Show. Her memoir The Bills Keep Coming, the Grass Keeps Growing, won a third place in the National Federation of Press Women 2019 contest.

She had been writing for a long time.When Sandi said in the spring of 1956 that she wanted to be a baseball announcer, her father told her she would have to learn journalism. She began her writing career that fall at the age of 13 at her local newspaper in Bucyrus, Ohio.

She earned a bachelor's degree in broadcast journalism at Kent State University in 1965 and worked in a couple of small radio stations. In spring of 1968 she started a lengthy career at United Press International in Columbus, Ohio. She worked in medical communications, in sports reporting, even as a volunteer coordinator at a large cemetery. But newspaper writing had always been her first love and the start of the new century found her at a local weekly newspaper.

An assignment there led her to a writing group where she was able to learn about different styles of writing. Always striving for different forms of writing, she embarked on book writing in 2008, working some two years to craft her dog stories into Poodle Mistress. She and her then husband Red had raised the nine dogs in the first 27 years of their 40-year marriage. She figured this would be her only contribution to the literary world, but a few months later she was challenged to write on male friendship. Teaming up with her ex-boss John Kady, Sandi anchored the work Newsroom Buddies: A working friendship at United Press International. This book chronicles their 22-plus years of working together at the news service in Columbus, Ohio, as well as a 45-year friendship that stretched from the day John offered her a job in 1967 until his death as the book was being edited. 

When Sandi was suddenly plunged into widowhood, she used that new life as the basis of more writing, mainly for therapy. As she strives to learn more about different forms of writing, she as created a children's book, Bunny Bob: The Bumbling Easter Bunny

Preceded in death by: Husband: Hugh "Red" Latimer. Parents: Weldon and Ollie Gould. Brother: Jim Gould. Survived by: Nephew: Gavin Gould. Niece: Shannon (Zac) Asbury. Great nieces: Stephanie Gould and Peyton Asbury. Numerous other family and friends. Friends may call at JERRY SPEARS FUNERAL HOME, 2693 W. Broad St., Thursday, 4-7 PM, where service will be held 10:00 AM Friday. Interment Green Lawn Cemetery.

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