Sandra K Stone

Sandy Stone was born July 17, 1949 in Dickinson, North Dakota.  She was raised by her parents, Gene and Betty, along with her two brothers Rocky and Kenny.  The lived in Bowman North Dakota until 1955. During her years in Bowman, Sandy made a life long friend, Carolyn McKennett.  The family moved to Rapid City, where Sandy attended school, graduating in 1967.  She was a cheerleader in both junior high and high school.  She loved to ice skate, spending many winter evenings skating on Jackson pond.  She was also a good snow skier, skiing Harney Peak in South Dakota, then later making trips to Colorado.

Sandy went to college at the University of South Dakota in Vermillion, graduating in 1971 with a Bachelor of Science in Dental Hygiene. She worked in Rapid City as a hygienist for a year, before following her family to Nevada.  She worked in Reno for a year, then moved to Las Vegas to be near her parents.  She had a house in Las Vegas and then moved to a small cabin on Mt. Charleston, where she lived with her three beloved Samoyed dogs for many years. 

Sandy had loved horses for as long as anyone can remember.  One year, she decided to sell her cabin and buy a house with 3 acres in Pahrump, Nevada, where she could have horses, along with a few other farm animals, chickens, a couple of steers, dogs, and cats.  She had a real scare several years ago when she was thrown from a horse and broke her neck.  Fortunately, she recovered. However her interest in riding diminished, but not her love of horses or farm animals.

Late in life she met Jim Vernon and they were married on Sandy's birthday, July 17, 2017.  The two enjoyed their horses, long breakfasts at the local diner and regaling family and friends with great storytelling.  Sandy even learned to love football-cheering on the Saints and LSU alongside Jim.

In mid 2020, Sandy began to have mobility problems, forcing her to leave the hygiene profession.  The problems continued to increase.  She saw many specialists, who conducted countless tests, but none could come up with a cause for her increasing paralysis.  In September, it had completely paralyzed her, ultimately shutting her lungs down.

Sandy will be remembered as a person who always thought positively of situations, who was intellectually curious and forever learning.  She loved to have a good time with family and friends and looked forward to being with her entire family at Christmas.  She never shied away from a spirited debate, and she never met an animal she didn't love.

She leaves husband Jim Vernon, brother Kenny of Las Vegas, brother Rocky and sister-in-law Sherry of Vona, CO, nieces Roxy Stone of New York City, and Stephy Stone of Denver, CO.

She will be dearly missed.

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