Sandra Jean Heath

Sandra Jean Sisson Heath, 82, of Downers Grove, IL., passed away on Tuesday, April 30, 2024, at Terra Vista of Oakbrook in Oakbrook Terrace, Il. She was born in Keokuk, Iowa, March 30, 1942, the daughter of Anna Marie Riley Sisson and Carl Eugene Sisson.

Sandra grew up on the family farm in Folker Township north of Luray, Missouri. Sandra attended Union Number 17 (a one-room school), the Luray Elementary School, and Kahoka High school from which she graduated in 1960. Being the eldest daughter of three Sandra took on the responsibility of cooking for the family and the hired man as a teenager when her mother attended summer school sessions. Sandra was a talented musician, and she served as a pianist at the Luray Baptist Church which she attended faithfully until she left home.

Sandra enjoyed her participation in the local 4-H club, and she especially excelled in her food projects. Her presentations and Clark County Fair exhibits resulted in an impressive collection of blue ribbons and greater self-confidence.

In 1964 Sandra graduated from Culver-Stockton College in Canton, Missouri, where she majored in English and was a member of Chi Omega Sorority. Sandra moved to Chicago, Illinois, and was employed by The Chicago Sun Times before becoming a copywriter for Carson Pirie Scott and Company. Sandra could be very persuasive at selling, and she began a long and successful career in advertising and public relations beginning by employment with the Leo Burnett Agency and the Cooper and Golin Agency and culminating in her founding her own public relations firm, Heath Communications, in 1975.

Sandra married Thomas Miller Heath at the Christian Church in Canton, Missouri on April 1, 1967, and the newlyweds spent their honeymoon in Europe before settling in Downers, Grove, IL. They were married for 54 years until Tom’s death in 2021.

Sandra was proud to have become the sole owner of the Sisson farm in 2005, and she was the last of the Sisson lineage to own the property that was first purchased by Henry E. and Margaret Sisson in 1869.

Sandra believed in the power of prayer, positive thinking, and the necessity of good nutrition, and she appreciated beauty in all its forms. Sandra had a strong work ethic, and she valued advice from successful people whom she admired.

Sandra’s final years were spent peacefully and safely at Terra Vista of Oakbrook in Oakbrook Terrace, IL, thanks to the directed care of her nieces, Anne Tuttle, and Helen Tuttle, who were her legal guardians.

Sandra is survived by sisters, Connie Ann Sisson McPherson (Roger) of Sweet Home Township, Clark County, MO., and Mary Kay “Malley” Sisson, (Doug Ackley) of Manhattan, KS: sister-in-law, Nancy Tuttle of Hanover, NH: nephew, Andrew McPherson (Seana) and children of Mt. Prospect, IL: nieces, Claire McPherson Lundberg (Brett) and children of Chanhassen, MN., Anne Tuttle of San Antonio, TX., and Helen “Lily” Tuttle of Brooklyn, NY., nephew, Robert Giddins of Naperville, IL., and many cousins.

Memorial Services will be held for Sandra Jean Sisson Heath on Monday, June 3, 2024, at 3:00 pm at Wilson & Triplett Funeral Home, Kahoka, MO.  Pastor Shawn McAfee will officiate. Visitation will be held at the Wilson & Triplett Funeral Home, Monday, June 3, 2024, from 2:00 pm until time of service at 3:00 pm.  A private inurnment at the Sisson Family Plot in Combs Cemetery will be held Tuesday, June 4, 2024.  Memorials in memory of Sandra Jean Sisson Heath are suggested to the Luray Combs Cemetery or to Culver Stockton College. You are invited to share your memories of Sandra and may leave a condolence at www.wilsontriplett.com