Remembering 'Country Fried News'

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For the past three years of helping build this paper, I've admittedly grown numb to the obits page. On Mondays and Thursdays, our deadline days, I ask whoever handles the obits if we have any to put on that page. Obits for me was just content to fill up Page 3, especially since I didn't really know who anybody was because I'm not from Gonzales.

Wednesday evening I got an email, as is usually the case, to put in another obit in the upcoming paper. But this time it's a bit different.

You see, every once in a while before I got promoted to Managing Editor (which is just a fancy title and an excuse to give me more responsibilities such as make sure everything that goes in the paper is proofed and good to go) I'd turn to Page 5 in the paper to see Sandi Gandre's smiling face attached to her column that was right underneath that awesome little graphic that reads “Sandi's Country Fried News.” Today, I'm sad to see her picture on Page 3, where the obituaries reside.

I never met Sandi in person, but I did enjoy the few times she'd call in to the office looking for me or my reporter Erik, asking if we got her column. Her email didn't always comply, so she always had to call in just in case.

One time I remember she called in, again making sure we received her email and then proceeded to talk my ear off about all the gossip in town. I, being just a sports guy, had no idea what she was talking about or who she was talking about, but of course I continued to listen even though I had a ton of work to do. I mean, how could anybody cut her off or hang up on her? I wouldn't dare. So I happily, though at times impatiently sat there and listened.

By the end of the conversation she asked me if I had any gossip to give her, to which I replied “ma'am I have no idea, I just do sports.” She laughed, apologized for taking up so much of my time and wished me a good day. I always try to assure her that she wasn't taking up my time, after all, for anyone who was blessed to meet her they'd tell you she was so sweet.

I want to emphasize one more time that I never met her in person, and it's sad to write that I never will. But when she stopped writing regularly, I did miss turning to Page 5 and seeing her smiling face. I'm going to miss that even more. I'm also going to miss “stealing her away” from Erik as she'd ask for me over the phone later down the road more than she asked to speak to Erik.

Wednesday night I was reminded of an important fact. Obits aren't just content to fill up Page 3. These stories and photos are of human beings. They were real, living people doing real, living people stuff. And I'm going to miss the real life people stuff that Sandi did, including writing that column for us at the Inquirer.

As Sandi would end her column, have a good week. God bless.

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