Sandra Rahn Lee

Sandra Rahn Lee, 79, of Columbus, GA died December 20, 2023 after a short illness. A Celebration of Life will be held 11:00 AM Wednesday, January 3, 2024 in the Chapel of McMullen Funeral Home and Crematory in Columbus with Dr. Shane Green officiating. The family will receive friends following the service at the funeral home.

Sandi was born September 12, 1944 in Atlanta, GA daughter of the late Earl Edward Rahn and Juanita Moore Garner White. The family lived in Gainesville, GA and Sandi grew up riding her horse on Green Street and attended Gainesville High School where she was a cheerleader, majorette, basketball player, an active water-skier on Lake Lanier and Miss GHS 1962. “Big Mama” as she was known, loved to travel and visited 31 countries on a European and Asian tour after graduating high school.

Sandi attended the University of Georgia where she was an Alpha Chi Omega. She obtained a BA in Education and a Master’s degree in Special Education. She moved to Jacksonville to be nearer to her siblings where she became a teacher. She met and married Richard Wilson, a Naval aviator, and had her first daughter Heather. Sandi was always adventurous and she and another Naval wife along with their infants spent a few months travelling around Europe in a station wagon following Richard’s ship from port to port. They later moved to Manassas, VA where Chad was born. A year later the family settled in Columbus, along with Duchess, the first of many cocker spaniels, in the first of three houses in historic Overlook, a neighborhood that Sandi loved.

Sandi became a teacher and later the director of the Listening Eyes School for the Deaf. She then became a Special Education coordinator for Muscogee County School District where she placed children at the Bibb School in the neighborhood which later became her home. Sandi loved working with special needs children, and she could sign as fast as she could talk, which is saying something!

Sandi married Dr. Tommy Lee in 1977. She was stepmother to his two children Jody and Ricky Lee and enjoyed making big family dinners for Thanksgivings and holidays. She changed careers at this point and went to work as a sales rep for SouthernNet Telephone in West Point. She loved sales and later moved on to being a medical rep at Merck, Sharpe and Dohme.

Tommy’s career took them down to Clinch County and Homerville, Ga where, true to form, Sandi made friends with everyone and took great delight in planning holiday house decorating competitions and dress up parties. In Homerville she worked at the Dollar General where she elevated the display windows to vignettes worthy of a Macy’s or Bloomingdale’s display in NYC. Her Homerville years were some of the happiest of her life and her sweet cocker spaniel Solomon shared those days with the family.

Sandi moved back to the Columbus area in the early 90’s and out to Waverly Hall in Harris County where they bought Raintree Farms and Sandi embarked on the ambitious project of renovating the house and opening an elegant bed and breakfast that was host to many beautiful weddings and events. She loved the Rahn family Thanksgivings there and would set a table down the center of the entry hall or out on the lawn and cook for three days serving over 22 dishes and seating up to 30 people at her gorgeous table. She helped to form the Up With Waverly Hall committee and was a member of the city council, working tirelessly to improve the local parks and amenities including the creation of the walking trail made from the abandoned railway line where she could be seen walking Samson and Sophie her two cocker spaniels.

Sandi moved to Bibb City in 2015 and became an active advocate for historical preservation of the mill town history and architecture. She was known on the street for her Southern cooking and was seen delivering food to neighbors on every occasion, births, deaths, sicknesses, and weddings. Sandi adopted Scarlett O’Hara and lived happily in her little house fostering dogs, cooking, and setting her tablescapes. Sandi also worked with Daniel and the lovely team at Curated Collections valuing silver and helping with styling for the sales and they became like her second family.

Much to her surprise she found herself a popular member of a large online community of like-minded table and interior decorators where she met many friends. She travelled to various BTS (Beautiful Table Settings) events and hosted a successful one at the Wynn House in Columbus. The first thing she asked her doctor after the first heart attack was if she could attend a BTS event in Mississippi in Feb and her niece’s wedding in March. As one BTS friend put it, “Sandi never met a stranger.” She treasured those connections and her caring nature extended far and wide in the digital community.

Sandi loved her family. One of eight children, she liked it best when everyone gathered to eat and share stories. Her grandchildren were the light of her life and “Mit” as she was known to them was always up for a political discussion or a cooking lesson with any of the tribe. She was a bright and colorful person who wasn’t afraid to stand out or go against the grain if she thought it was right. Like most big bold personalities, she could be hard to deal with sometimes, but you always knew where you stood with Sandi as she would tell you (repeatedly and often!). She was a force of nature and will leave a Sandi sized hole in her communities that will never be filled.

Survivors include her daughter, Heather Wilson Hancock (John) of Sydney, Australia; son, Michael Chadwick Wilson (Christi) of Birmingham, AL; grandchildren, Turner Hancock of Brooklyn, NY, Gigi Hancock (Ava Geenen) of Chapel Hill, NC, Reeves Hancock of Sydney, Australia, Jack Wilson (Merill) of Birmingham, AL, Matt Wilson of Birmingham, AL, Rett Wilson of Birmingham, AL; siblings, John Rahn (Jean), Earl Rahn (Amy), Stephen Rahn (Pam), Missy Garner (Wayne), Peter Rahn (Jennifer), Adrienne Davis, Bill Rahn (Elaine); and numerous other nieces, nephews, and family members.

In lieu of flowers, contributions may be sent to Cookies Canine Animal Rescue & Sanctuary at https://www.facebook.com/CookiesAnimalRescue via the PayPal link.