Sandra Canniff passed away earlier this week at her home in Seven Hills, western Sydney, at the age of 73.
Many will remember Sandy, who migrated from Canada to Australia in 1971 and later became an Australian citizen. She was deeply involved in the life of the church throughout the 1970s and 1980s, especially in leadership camps and young adult activities. Her connections with church members remained strong into the 1990s and beyond.
Sandy’s eldest sister and next of kin, Dianne Taylor, is a church member in Saskatoon, Saskatchewan, Canada. Please keep Dianne and her family in your prayers during this time of loss.
We received the following notification from Garry Sheffield - Pickleball Association:
With regret we wish to advise that Sandra, a pioneer of Pickleball NSW, has passed away aged 73 years leaving an enduring legacy to our organisation and our broader community.
Sandra was part of the founding NSW Pickleball community and after a series of pre-establishment group meetings, the group formally incorporated in June 2019 with Bob Mendelson as President and Sandra Secretary. Sandra was elected President of PANSW in November 2020 and her stewardship was instrumental in developing the supporting frameworks for growth of affiliated clubs and the spirit of volunteerism in underpinning the culture of our sport and organisation. Her values were that you didn’t just come to play, you came to get involved. Sandra became one of our early referees and was instrumental in the recruitment of many more to support emerging competitions. Strong-minded, her interests were always on what’s best for pickleball and her resilience and dedication were instrumental in our growth.
In recent times Sandra had experienced poor health stepping down from the Presidency at last year’s Annual General Meeting.
We extend our deepest sympathies to her family and friends. Let us remember her by embodying the dedication she had to the development of our wonderful pickleball community.
Further arrangements are not known at present and will be passed on as we become aware of any.
Garry Sheffield
President Pickleball Association of NSW