Sandra Lou Lund

Sandra Lou (Qualey) Lund, daughter of Pearl Qualey, a well-loved teacher, and Edward Qualey, publisher of The Menahga Messenger, spent almost all of her 86 years in Menahga, Minnesota. Sandra, with auburn hair and freckles, was the youngest and last remaining of the four siblings. The Qualey family were charter members of First English Lutheran Church, and Sandra spent much of her life as an active member there and later at the Methodist Church. As a child, Sandra spent many early mornings before school setting type at the newspaper office. She loved dogs, loved to swim, ice skate, play piano, and read. She was salutatorian of her high school class, and studied business at a school in Texas. In 1955, she married Melvin Lund. They lived in Buhl, Minnesota for a couple of years as Melvin worked in the Mesabi Iron range. During that time, Sandra gave birth to their two daughters, Deborah Ann and Cynthia Marie, 15 months apart. They moved back to Menahga, eventually building the home Sandra lived in for the next 63 years. Five years after the girls, Thomas Edward was born. These years were filled with Midway baseball games, a love that continued after Melvin’s death 25 years ago. Much later, Basil Kumpula reappeared in Sandra’s life, and they enjoyed each other’s company until his passing in 2016. In Menahga, Sandra held various jobs, including working at First National Bank, The Menahga Coop Sampo, The Coop Federal Credit Union, North Star Lumber, and VFW Post 6206. For Sandra, working with the VFW wasn’t just a job. It was about the veterans, and beyond that, the support the organization gave to people in need. Sandra showed her love through service. She didn’t do anything halfway. You could count on her to study rules, follow them, speak up when it was warranted, organize, and follow through on tasks or projects. She showed up for causes and people who needed a hand, regularly visited residents at Green Pine Acres, spent many Thanksgivings delivering meals, was the top seller of poppies, tickets, or whatever else was offered for benefits or fundraisers, and could be found wherever she felt she could be useful, caring for and accepting everyone unconditionally. Sandra leaves behind her children, Deb, Cindy, and Tom, sons-in-law Jeff and Karl, grandchildren Aaron, Tyler, Kaj, Sandra, and Jean, great grandchildren Omega, Carter, and Ingrid, and numerous nieces and nephews. A memorial service for Sandra will be held at First English Lutheran Church in Menahga on Friday, July 9, at 11:00, with a lunch to follow. There will also be a visitation Thursday night from 5- 7pm at First English Lutheran Church and one hour prior to the service at the church.