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Remembering Sarah
 On
October 23, 2003, Sarah Virginia Chandler lost a 3 month, 12 day battle
with an extremely rare and aggressive form of Non-Hodgkins Lymphoma.
Before she was diagnosed on July 11, 2003, as you can see from her
picture taken just 22 days earlier, she was a beautiful and talented
25-year old high school teacher who loved giving back all that she had
been given in knowledge and life experiences. Her students adored her,
as did everyone who knew her.
When
she was diagnosed, she was forced to retire from teaching, give up her
home and give her life and strength to her fight for a cure for her
disease so that she could return to the classroom that she loved. She
moved into a Bone Marrow Transplant Unit where she remained until her
death, while receiving various chemotherapy treatments.
In spite of her disease, she never gave up what cancer had taken from
her. She never stopped smiling in spite of her pain and fear and all
who knew and loved her were inspired by her spirit, strength and
courage. After Sarah lost her battle, her family wanted to do something to make a difference for her students. They wanted to honor her and find a way that young people, who lived exemplary lives and were role models for the principles that she so passionately believed in, could continue their education and continue her legacy through their lives. Sarah's family and friends have worked hard to make sure that her memory lives on and, in spite of the terrible loss, many good things have come from her death, including the establishment of scholarships in her memory at Monacan High School in Richmond, Virginia, where she taught for four years until she died.
In the last six years since her memorial scholarships were established, over $36,000 in scholarship money has been awarded to students who best exhibit the ideals by which Sarah lived her life. One of these scholarships, The Sarah Chandler Memorial Humanitarian Scholarship, is funded directly by gifts given in her memory by those who knew and loved her. Each year, as direct donations are given to the non-profit Human Ties Organization, which administers this scholarship, additional aid is given to deserving students. You should know that her scholarship is only awarded to students who undergo a rigorous application process and must meet strict criteria including submitting letters of recommendation, demonstrated excellence in academics, humanitarianism, and leadership, have been a role model for the disadvantaged and have greatly enhanced the quality of life of others in the community. Sarah held her students to the highest standards and the same has been done in awarding these scholarships each year.
With Sarah's daily inspiration, Designs by Three of a Kind was created as a way to provide additional funds to both her scholarship and the Leukemia and Lymphoma Society. Please consider shopping with us because your support is helping keep Sarah's memory alive, and helping students who never had the privilege of knowing her, make a difference in the lives of others. In fact, we are proud to say that shopping with us this past year allowed us to fund an entire additional scholarship! Thank you! Sarah would have been so proud of being the inspiration and motivation behind this idea. New items are being added all the time so check back often! In addition, forwarding this site on to others, continues to help remember Sarah.
If you prefer to make a direct tax deductible donation to Sarah's Scholarship, or to the Leukemia and Lymphoma Society, you may mail your check to:
Ms. Clare Tilton, Director
Center for the Humanities
Monacan High School
11500 Smoketree Drive
Richmond, VA 23236
Please make the check payable to: "Human Ties" and note in the memo section "Sarah Chandler Memorial Humanitarian Scholarship."
To donate to the Leukemia and Lymphoma Society, you may do so here.
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