Obituary of Sandra Gallman Privitera

JoAnna Sandra Hager (Sandy) was born to parents Hermina (Lehnherr) and Harry Hager in Marshfield, WI. After her father died suddenly in an accident, her mother moved Sandy 8, and her brother, Dan, 6 to stay with their Aunt Marie and Uncle Andy Anderson in Marshfield while Hermina went to art school for two years. After two years in art school, the three moved to Appleton, WI. When Sandy was in 8th grade, they moved to Madison, WI. Ironically, her mother died when Sandy was 15 years old, just a few years later from cancer. Sandy and her brother were now orphans at a young age. She, and her brother, had to move in with their Aunt and Uncle Blonde and Hank Lehnherr in Madison, WI. Because money was sparse, Sandy took a job at a diner and was nicknamed “French Fry,” not because she was short and skinny, but because she smelled like french fries while attending and finishing high school.

After graduating, she moved in with her Aunt Genevieve (Gen) and Uncle Ted Hager, with their two daughters and son to Chicago, IL. She later met her husband, Donald Gallman, and had two children, Darcy and Daniel Gallman.

After their divorce, she was an amazing, stoic woman moving to different states throughout the years while supporting her two young children, starting at 9 and 6, as a single mom. Sandra worked at various venues somehow providing a loving clean home, food, and clothes. To stretch the dollars, she was given free lunch at one establishment and would often skip dinner at home to ensure she could afford hot lunch at school for her children. Not an animal person, she often came home to find wild and homeless animals “needing attention” being kept in different parts of her home, being made to get kisses from horses through her car window, and pet sat many species simultaneously and never complained. A true mother and hero under challenging times.

Years later, after moving back to FL, she met her future husband, Peter Privitera, while entertaining a friend’s friend at the Thunderbird Beach Resort in Treasure Island, FL where she never went. She tore her contact information from her checkbook deposit slip and handed it to him, and that is how fate happened. She adored him, and he adored her, the love of her life for 37 years. They were nearly inseparable. Her one wish she shared was that they had met decades earlier.

Before they met, Sandy traveled the world, and then again together as they shared many adventures traveling the United States and around the globe via air, car, and sea, sometimes going with or taking family and friends with to share the experience. She was very independent, loved to drive, and was the driver for everyone, even when her eyesight was failing, until convinced she couldn’t. One of the hardest moments of her life.

She loved her husband who nicknamed her “The Ock” and “Button”, also known as “Agnus”, family and friends, her house, traveling, driving, going to Publix nearly every day, reading books, going out to eat, shopping, sitting on the couch or on on her back porch with a favorite cocktail, chasing storms and hurricanes, and working in the office with Peter, her desk located near the front door where she also happily greeted tenants and visitors. She loved the office, it was her purpose. One of her favorite annual events was decorating and planning the Office Building’s annual Christmas party. Together, they worked side-by-side since the 1980’s, built and sold several successful businesses, and worked together until 2021.

Although she loved Florida, her favorite place was going to their Mountain House in North Carolina. She enjoyed river rafting, chasing waterfalls, visiting various towns and vineyards, sitting on the side porch with coffee listening to birds and watching for bears, and going to her favorite restaurant Binion’s Roadhouse. She said that The Mountain House was the one place she could have Peter all to herself, yet she shared this home with others and made many long-time friends there.

She was not much of a conversationalist in her later years but would throw unprompted one-sentence zingers that would set a room laughing. She had no problem saying what she saw or felt to family, friends, or an unsuspecting individual.

Sandra Gallman Privitera is survived by her daughter Darcy (Gallman) Mullins, and fiancé Michael Laky, her son, Daniel Gallman, grand-daughter Skylar Gallman, stepdaughters Lisa Privitera, Kim Privitera and Kristen Barrett, grandchildren Cara and Owen Pyle, Gabriella Platt, Sophia, Jacob, and Isabella Barrett, nephew Daniel, Jennifer and Anthony Hager, nieces Lori (Hager) and Joe Benes, Kristine (Hager) and Tom Cisewski, her sister Jean (Hager) and Joe Collins, sisters-in-law Sue Hager and Jimmy, and Anna Hager, and close friends Nancy Disterhoff, Mary Masey, The Velcro Group (you know who you are), friends at the St. Petersburg Yacht Club, and countless family members and friends in the US, Florida, and North Carolina.

All who knew her will miss her stoic presence, love, grace, frankness and honesty, smile, wit, generosity, stories, who didn’t complain, great listener and her secret famous homemade brown beans and lasagna.

She is preceded in death by her long-time love, husband, Peter Privitera, her brother Daniel Hager, great nephew Kolton Flynn, her parents, and other family members and friends.

We are honored to have shared your life with us, and will all sincerely and dearly miss you, “Our Queen.”