Obituary of Sandra Lynn Rainey

Sandra “Sandie” Lynn Rainey (Eastman), formerly from Burlington MA and Chelmsford MA, passed away on July 11, 2023 at the age of 69.

Sandie was always drawn to nature. She loved the beach and her favorite day would consist of a walk along the water’s edge ending with a big lobster roll. She worked at various places during her life, but her favorite was when she moved to Northeast Tennessee and started a large nursery, Roaring Springs Nursery, where she grew and sold hostas as well as other perennials.

She moved back to Massachusetts in 2010 and eventually settled in Chelmsford. While living in Chelmsford, she started a local branch of the Kindness Rocks Project called Chelmsford Rocks. She and the members would spend hours finding, painting, and distributing rocks with uplifting messages, placing them in locations where people could stumble across them, with the hope of making their day a little brighter. One of the rocks went viral on Facebook that read, “Dear one, may this be a reminder that someone cares & that kindness exists. Now go be that reminder for someone else!” The type of positivity that Sandie was able to share made the world a better place.

Sandie was also very involved with the Wish Project, the Friends of Roberts Field Friendship Park, and most recently The Chelmsford Lions Club. With the Lions, their motto is “We Serve”. Sandie loved serving the community: feeding the hungry, doing hearing and vision testing, hosting glasses drives to send overseas, and getting and filling backpacks for kids going back to school.

Sandie will be remembered for her giving nature. She’ll be forever loved and dearly missed by many.

Sandra was the beloved daughter of the late Roger Eastman and Alice Eastman (Bobotas). She was the loving sister of Steven Eastman of Pelham, NH and Donna Normile of Lake Worth, Florida. She was the proud aunt of Hannah Normile. She is also survived by her lifelong friends, Joanne McDonough, Maryellen Covino, and Dianne Ferrara.  She was the former wife of Steve Rainey.

Please consider making donations to either the Chelmsford Lions Club, P.O. box 25, Chelmsford, MA 01824, or to a GoFundMe in Sandie’s honor to help fund various service projects https://www.gofundme.com/f/keep-sandie-raineys-passion-for-service-alive

A celebration of Sandie’s life will take place in the fall with details to follow.