Sarah Breslin Monson, 94, recently of Versailles, Ky., passed away peacefully November 19, 2019 with her loving daughter, Fredericka, by her side.
Sarah was born October 3, 1925 in Pittsburgh, Pa. within earshot of the frenzied fans at Forbes Field, loudly cheering their Pirates, who within days would become World Series Champions.
Sarah, her parents, and two younger sisters, moved often – an exercise that would prove prophetic. Sarah was an exemplary student while attending a number of elementary and secondary schools throughout Pennsylvania and New York. Sarah was the salutatorian of her senior class, a remarkable feat in that she graduated from Kingston Township High School in Trucksville, Pa. at the age of 16. She received her Bachelor of Science in Chemistry before she was 21 from Pennsylvania’s College Misericordia (aka Misericordia University).
With her academic prowess and intellectual curiosity, Sarah landed a position at DuPont in Buffalo, N.Y., where she became an integral part of the team at the Pioneering Research Laboratory. She worked with a squad of engineers who invented and developed many household and industrial products that were marketed the world over. It was there she met and began romancing Robert C. Monson. The two were married on February 11, 1950, creating an unwavering partnership of love and devotion that would endure for nearly seven decades.
Sarah transitioned to being a stay-at-home mom while raising five children – four boys and a girl – and her life took on the adventuring existence of her youth. Her wayfaring family – over a period of 15 years – relocated from New York to Ohio to South Carolina to overseas to the Grand Duchy of Luxembourg before heading back stateside to Delaware and Kentucky.
Sarah was a devout Catholic and she was quite active within the church throughout her life. When she returned to the workforce in the 1970s, it was at Holy Family Catholic School in Ashland, Ky., where she taught high school-level advanced math and science classes. She was respected and adored by her students, who were delighted when she was named “Teacher of the Year.” Sarah cultivated a lifelong love of animals, raising and breeding poodles and competing in dog shows with her beloved bull terrier, Lady. She also stabled a trio of horses, and in later years she cherished the companionship of her precious cats, Punch and Toni. Sarah was an accomplished bridge player and she enjoyed the regular assemblages of friends and fellow players in the many iterations of her bridge club. With an ardent sense of observational humor, Sarah was renowned in the art of storytelling, a talent that served her well for the two and a half decades she performed as a senior citizen cast member of the Amelia Community Theatre.
Upon Bob’s retirement, Sarah designed their “dream home” in Fernandina Beach on Amelia Island, Fla. It was from this locale she and Bob set sail aboard Sandpiper, their 34-foot Aloha sailboat, journeying to many exotic ports throughout the Caribbean. Sarah loved the allure of foreign travel. She and Robert adventured to several dozen countries in Africa, Asia, Europe, and South America. Sarah was devoted to her family and she held dear the visits from her adult children and grandchildren. She especially treasured family reunions and the large get-togethers over the Christmas holidays at her Florida home.
Sarah is survived by her sons, Christopher (Ann) of Wilmington, Del., Stephen (Laura) of Minneapolis, Minn., Joseph (Lisbet) of Minneapolis, and Martin (Stacia) of Seattle, Wash., a daughter, Fredericka (Rick) Kessler of Versailles, Ky.; a granddaughter, Shawna (Monson) Oien; and grandsons, Nicholas and Dylan Monson and Ryan and Andrew Kessler.
Sarah was preceded in death by her husband, Robert, and sisters, Whitney and Frances.
A Memorial Mass will be held at 11 a.m. Friday, December 27, 2019 at St. Leo Catholic Church. Fr. Chris Clay will officiate.
Online condolences may be expressed at www.ClarkLegacyCenter.com.
Clark Legacy Center