Obituary of Mary Alexandria (Sandy) McLaughlin

It is with great sadness that we announce the passing of Sandy McLaughlin. In the early morning hours of August 5, 2022, she quietly passed in her sleep. To say that Sandy lived a full life is an understatement. She was born in Belfast Ireland on February 27th, 1943. Shortly after her birth her parents moved the family to London, England. Soon after, her mother passed away and Sandy and her brother were placed in a London orphanage where she remained until graduating high school. Shortly after high school she was offered the position as an Au pair in Boston, Massachusetts by a prominent heart surgeon and his wife to care for their ten children. After completing her Au pair contract, Sandy traveled around the United States. Lucky for all of her family, she ended up in New Orleans, where she met her husband, Joe. They were married in Cocoa Beach 56 years ago. Their careers caused them to travel the United States with notable stays in San Diego, Pittsburgh, Savannah and finally back to Cocoa Beach. Sandy was preceded in death by her father Richard McConnell, her mother Mary Donaldson McConnell and her brother Derek McConnell. She is survived by her husband Joseph, her three sons Joseph (Marcella), Timothy (Holly) and Colin (Molly), and five grandchildren Coral, Caitlin, Cole, Delaney and Joseph IV (aka Cisco). This is in addition to her brother in laws Charles (Molly) and Gerard (Debbie). To know Sandy was to love her. She was tough, compassionate, and loyal to the very end. No matter what the situation, her family always came first. In between raising three boys and a husband, she held down too many jobs to name. She was also incredibly active in sports, as a competitive racquetball player, tennis player, paddle player and even dabbled in soccer for many years. Her shot on the basketball court was lights out, often taking down family and friends on the court. Never afraid of a challenge, she also made two parachute jumps. As alluded to earlier, her family was the pride of her life. Each day she tried to make her family’s life better. She was a warm and loving mother but never afraid to give all of her boys (husband included) a kick in the pants when they needed it. Never a day went by that you didn't know how much you were loved by Sandy. It was hard to find her without a smile on her face and she never complained about the hardships of her youth. She led by example, and instilled in her family, a no excuses mentality. Love, live, and make the next day better. She will be missed by all that knew her and will never be forgotten.