Sandra C. Kowen of Longmeadow, Massachusetts, died peacefully on July 14, 2022, at her home, after an illness. Born to James F. Kowen and Marcia Brown Kowen of Rochester, New York in 1943, she grew up in East Rochester, a tight-knit community. There she made many friends with whom she remained close all her life.After graduating from Bethany College in West Virginia in 1965, she moved to Boston where she attended the famed Katherine Gibbs School. Beginning work as a secretary, she worked in a number of positions, including as secretary to the President and Board of Trustees of the Museum of Fine Arts. After leaving Boston in 1980, she worked in San Francisco, Honolulu, Philadelphia and Hartford. Her quick mind, superior sense of humor, fierce independence, and admirable work ethic elevated her to the executive/management level many years before her retirement. She worked primarily for Amfac, Inc. (Director, Corporate Personnel), General Electric Credit Corporation (GECC) and Sun Life of Canada, always specializing in Human Resources.
For ten years in the '80s and '90s she lived in Honolulu, the home of her beloved brother Richard, his wife Susan and their children David and Peter Kowen. She was a doting and generous aunt who was always ready for fun. After she moved away, she was a frequent visitor to Honolulu, where she had three great nephews (Mason, James and Carter) at the time of her death. She considered her wonderful friends and her family to be her greatest blessings, along with those who cared so kindly for her in her final days.
As was her wish, her ashes will be scattered in the ocean off Oahu, in the presence of her family. She loved life and will be missed by all who knew her. In lieu of flowers, contributions may be made to the Southern Law Poverty Center at splcenter.org.
