Obituary for Sandra Lee Bathke (St. Clair)
Sandra (Sandy) Bathke, age 75 of Cookeville, Tennessee passed away peacefully at her home Monday, December 26, 2022, after a five-year battle with dementia.
Born Sunday, August 24, 1947, in Honolulu, Hawaii, she was the daughter of the late Mearl St. Clair and the late Kimiko Tamagawa St. Clair.
She was a beloved wife, mom, nana, sister, aunt, and friend to all who knew her.
Sandy was a retired schoolteacher, having her master’s degree in Special Education. Before going into education, Sandy worked for the Circuit Court Clerk's office as an administrative assistant, and she also worked as a secretary for the Chemistry Department at Tennessee Technology University in the early to mid-1970's. She also did facial composites for the Cookeville Police Department. Her teaching career started when she taught at Taft Juvenile Detention Center in Pikeville, Tennessee in the late-1970's. After she left Taft, she was a stay-at-home mom for many years before going back to teaching which included teaching at Jere Whitson Elementary School, Cookeville Junior High School, Cookeville High School, and then transferred to Cornerstone Middle School, from which she retired from teaching in 2008 due to health issues. Sandy was a natural born artist who could paint anything, including portraits, and could even do name ink drawings. Her paintings would be on display for sale at Shoney's restaurant and at the Art Center on Walnut Avenue.
She is survived by her husband of 40 years, Paul Bathke, whom she married on July 2, 1982.
She is also survived by her children, Regina Damian (John), Sonya Randolph (Scott), Abi Bathke, and Matthew Bathke (Heather), her sisters, Carol Ann Gaw and Elaine Litchford, her 10 grandchildren, Hailey Jackson (Richard), Ethan, Trevor, and Trey Cross, Kyah Damian, Elijah Quesenberry, Jace Cornelius, Brayden, Bryce, and Charlie Bathke, and a host of nieces and nephews.
She was preceded in death by her parents.
The family will receive friends at Crest Lawn Funeral Home Thursday, December 29, 2022 from 4:00 pm until 8:00 pm, with a service to begin at 7:00 pm with Pastor Bobby Davis officiating.
A Mass of Christian Burial for Sandy will be held Friday, December 30 2022 beginning at 10:00 am at St. Thomas Aquinas Catholic Church with Father Jerry Kopel officiating. Interment will follow in Crest Lawn Memorial Cemetery.
Pallbearers will be Ethan Cross, Trevor and Trey Cross, Elijah Quesenberry, Brayden Bathke, and Landon Gaw.
In lieu of flowers donations may be made to the Cookeville Animal Shelter.
Born Sunday, August 24, 1947, in Honolulu, Hawaii, she was the daughter of the late Mearl St. Clair and the late Kimiko Tamagawa St. Clair.
She was a beloved wife, mom, nana, sister, aunt, and friend to all who knew her.
Sandy was a retired schoolteacher, having her master’s degree in Special Education. Before going into education, Sandy worked for the Circuit Court Clerk's office as an administrative assistant, and she also worked as a secretary for the Chemistry Department at Tennessee Technology University in the early to mid-1970's. She also did facial composites for the Cookeville Police Department. Her teaching career started when she taught at Taft Juvenile Detention Center in Pikeville, Tennessee in the late-1970's. After she left Taft, she was a stay-at-home mom for many years before going back to teaching which included teaching at Jere Whitson Elementary School, Cookeville Junior High School, Cookeville High School, and then transferred to Cornerstone Middle School, from which she retired from teaching in 2008 due to health issues. Sandy was a natural born artist who could paint anything, including portraits, and could even do name ink drawings. Her paintings would be on display for sale at Shoney's restaurant and at the Art Center on Walnut Avenue.
She is survived by her husband of 40 years, Paul Bathke, whom she married on July 2, 1982.
She is also survived by her children, Regina Damian (John), Sonya Randolph (Scott), Abi Bathke, and Matthew Bathke (Heather), her sisters, Carol Ann Gaw and Elaine Litchford, her 10 grandchildren, Hailey Jackson (Richard), Ethan, Trevor, and Trey Cross, Kyah Damian, Elijah Quesenberry, Jace Cornelius, Brayden, Bryce, and Charlie Bathke, and a host of nieces and nephews.
She was preceded in death by her parents.
The family will receive friends at Crest Lawn Funeral Home Thursday, December 29, 2022 from 4:00 pm until 8:00 pm, with a service to begin at 7:00 pm with Pastor Bobby Davis officiating.
A Mass of Christian Burial for Sandy will be held Friday, December 30 2022 beginning at 10:00 am at St. Thomas Aquinas Catholic Church with Father Jerry Kopel officiating. Interment will follow in Crest Lawn Memorial Cemetery.
Pallbearers will be Ethan Cross, Trevor and Trey Cross, Elijah Quesenberry, Brayden Bathke, and Landon Gaw.
In lieu of flowers donations may be made to the Cookeville Animal Shelter.