Sandi was nominated by her niece Cari Goodrich, and Cari wrote that her aunt, as many, has been a victim of the recent economy meltdown and was laid off from her career in housing development. During her time off, instead of wallowing in her sorrows, she decided to start a non-profit that would bring joy to not only her life - but others as well.
Sandi's vision began twenty-four years ago when a childhood friend of hers informed her that his daughter had Leukemia. Soon after on Halloween she had dressed up as Snow White for a costume party. The day after the party she transformed again into Snow White and headed off to visit her friend's terminally-ill child. When she walked into the room, her friend looked at her and said, "Is there a door open or is that chill I just got from you doing this for my daughter?"
In 2008 it happened again. A work associate came to her with the same devastating news of childhood cancer. Sandi wanted so badly to take his pain away just for a moment. His life was in a whirlwind and she wanted to do something. She told her twin sister the news, in which her sister simply stated: "Seems to me that Snow White needs to go to the hospital for a visit."
On October 4, 2008, Sandi went to UCSF Medical Center to visit the family and on that day Sandi's non-profit, Moments of Happiness, LLC was born. Sandi truly turned her awful situation (being laid off) into a very positive thing for others - she is truly selfless. Her only goal right now is to bring joy to terminal children's faces. She has gathered a group of volunteers together, and they dress up as "characters" and visit children's hospitals. They bring books, read stories and provide photo opportunities to families who are going through some very tough times.
To learn more about Moments of Happiness please visit their website:
http://www.momentsofhappiness.org
Watch for more Celebration of Aloha finalists every Friday in July.
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