Sandy Perez (Lansing)

It is with deep sadness and a heavy heart that I announce the passing of Sandy Lynn Perez, age 55 years old, of Lansing, Michigan. She peacefully passed away on Saturday, February 10, 2024, after a courageous battle with a sudden illness. She was born on Sunday, December 15, 1968, the daughter of Juan Jose Perez and Joyce Townsend Perez in Lansing, Michigan.

If you had the privilege to know Sandy, you knew how fiercely she loved, how proudly she protected, and if she could move the planets and stars for her mother, Joyce, it would have been so. Sandy was brilliantly witty, extraordinarily compassionate, and clever. She would make you laugh without breaking a sweat. Sandy had a love affair with the sunshine and tended devotedly to her beloved garden. She enjoyed hosting cook outs for family and friends, maintaining her flawless eyelashes, and tending to her great nieces and nephew, Nirvana, Ava, and Jaxson. Sandy always had an affinity for animals, especially dolphins but in recent years she began befriending stray cats so she could capture them, get them spayed or neutered, and send them on their way. She had been lovingly deemed the neighborhood "Cat Napper" and wore it as a badge of honor. To simply say her fur babies meant "a lot" to her would be a terrible disservice. She changed the lives of every being that came into her orbit with her gravity, and no amount of time will ever dull her loss.

Surviving is her daughter, Ashley Bender; mother, Joyce Perez; sister, Carmen Perez; brother, Juan Perez Jr; soul sister, Gloria Bermudez; niece, Andria Smith; nephew, Carl Smith Jr; niece, Sarah “Soda Pop” Hall; niece, Samantha Hall; nephew Jacob Cancino; great nephews, Gavin Robertson and Khayne Gulley; great great nephew, Liam Robertson; cousins, Rhonda and Alicia; Tia, Carmen Benavides; dear friends, Nancy and Indie; countless aunts, uncles, cousins and friends.

She is preceded in death by her father, Juan Jose "John" Perez; four great grandparents, Earl Townsend, Betty Townsend, Jesus Perez, and Maria Berlanga; sister, Angela "Angie" Castillo; uncle, Tony Benavides; uncles, Jesus Perez Junior, Alfonso Perez, Ignacio Perez, and Frank Perez; aunt, Mary Perez; and her cousin, Chad Perez passed away Saturday, February 24, 2024.

The family will be receiving friends starting at 10:00 AM with Memorial Mass to follow at 10:30. There will be a luncheon in the hall of the church following the service.