‘With the grace of an athlete’
Throughout her years in Newport Beach, Sandra O’Connell lived the
sporting life.
She was an accomplished youth gymnast and a renowned sailor as an
adult. O’Connell was the first woman to be named youth activities
sailing instructor for the city of Newport Beach.
“She was a natural athlete -- you put her in any given sport and
she’d be able to do it,” said O’Connell’s sister, Katherine Watson.
O’Connell died Aug. 10 after a long battle with cancer. She was
62.
Born in Los Angeles, O’Connell lived for part of her childhood on
her grandparents’ ranch in San Juan Capistrano, where she learned
horseback riding.
When the family moved to Newport Beach, O’Connell made a name for
herself as a ranked gymnast.
Her athleticism was never more apparent than on a trip to Utah as
a Girl Scout. The group was on a hiking expedition, Watson recounts,
when lightning struck a nearby tree.
O’Connell “was able to do forward rolls to get away” from the
falling tree, Watson said. O’Connell’s gymnastic skills kept her from
serious injury.
A graduate of Newport Harbor High School, O’Connell played golf at
Orange Coast College. She sailed for the Lido Isle Yacht Club, and
was a sailing instructor at the Balboa Yacht Club, often serving as a
skipper.
O’Connell had a number of jobs, including a position at Aetna
Insurance, which hired her as an adjuster and soon promoted her to
management.
But her real love was travel. While attending UCLA, she studied
international relations. Rather than stick it out in the classroom,
Watson said her sister felt the need to live out what she was reading
in textbooks.
“She used to say, ‘I want to see what I read about firsthand and
check out what is being reported to me ... The best way to know a
culture is to go there,’” Watson said.
So O’Connell set off for Europe, spending a year there, primarily
in Florence, Italy. Her travels took her to Fiji, Thailand,
Australia, and countries in Africa and South America.
Watson said her sister enjoyed learning the cultural norms and
linguistic nuances in the countries she visited. She also enjoyed
designing her own trips and later taking friends and family on a
guided tour of a region.
“She loved travel and she was constantly doing things for other
people,” said Norman Watson, O’Connell’s father.
She spent extended time in Ensenada, Mexico, where she served as
secretary to a community organization. She and her husband, Frederick
William O’Connell, eventually retired there.
Sandra O’Connell was an enthusiastic beachgoer who enjoyed dance
and athletic activities until her body would no longer let her
compete.
“She continued to move with the grace of an athlete,” Watson said.
* ELIA POWERS is the enterprise and general assignment reporter.
He may be reached at (714) 966-4623 or by e-mail at
o7elia.powers@latimes.comf7.
SANDRA O’CONNELL
* Born: Aug. 24, 1942
* Died: Aug. 10, 2005
* Memorial service: Held for family and friends
* Survived by: Son, Sean Gordon; husband, Frederick William
O’Connell; sister, Katherine Watson; and father, Norman Watson
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