Luther Everett Saunders

Luther Everett Saunders, Ph.D., age 91. He was given by God on June 6, 1931, and given to God on February 21, 2023. How does someone named Luther end up being called Ted or Teddy? The story has it that when he was a three-year-old boy in Kingston, Jamaica waiting for the bus to take him to nursery school, he carried a teddy bear. The bus driver greeted him every day by saying "Hey Teddy, how you do?" This nickname stuck with him his entire life. Since that time, he has been called many things: son, brother, husband, father, grandfather (GrandTed), great-grandfather, friend, coworker, neighbor, staff sergeant, teacher, professor, and a child of God. Ted was an elite athlete who represented Jamaica on its national soccer team. He was also an avid cricket, tennis, and track competitor. He later coached his children's soccer and baseball teams. In his later years, he took up the game of golf, and of course, he excelled. Ted came to the United States to attend college. He did so for a year at Fordham University in New York. After experiencing the tuition for a year, he decided to join the United States Air Force to serve his new country and to take advantage of the GI Bill to complete his education after his service. During this time, Ted married Sheila Aileen Buckley from Montego Bay, Jamaica in New York City. After four years of service, Ted was honorably discharged with the rank of Staff Sergeant. The couple moved to Michigan, where Ted completed his bachelor's degree at Michigan State University and began working as a public school teacher. Ted and Sheila went on to have six children. Ted completed a Master's degree from Wayne State University while working for the Chrysler Corporation as an employee professional development trainer. The family moved to Minnesota when Ted received a fellowship to pursue his doctorate at the University of Minnesota while he was employed as a faculty member at Dunwoody Institute. Ted received his Ph.D. in Curriculum and Instruction and worked for the Dakota County Vocational and Technical College as an administrator and curriculum specialist until his retirement. After 50 years of marriage, Ted lost Sheila to cancer. Ted assumed that he would live out the rest of his days alone but God had other plans. Ted was introduced to Pansey Barbara Henry from New York by way of Bridgewater, Westmoreland Parish, Jamaica, and they started a long-distance friendship for a year via phone before ever meeting in person. They finally met at the Miami International Airport in Florida. Later, Pansey and her daughter Michelle came to Minnesota to meet Ted's family and "check things out" to see if Ted was everything he appeared to be via phone. This would determine if Pansey would take the leap, marry him, and move to Minnesota. Pansey's pastor in New York gave her a dollar and told her to use it to call him if anything looked shady or not on the up and up. Pansey and Ted were married on November 20, 2011, in Jamaica surrounded by family and friends. Since that time, they had rarely been apart. They found a church home at Southview SDA and made numerous friends in the community. As Ted's health declined, Pansey was his devoted companion, his constant caregiver, and his fiercest advocate. When Ted took his final breath, Pansey was there, holding his hand and watching as he peacefully and beautifully transitioned. On the day of Ted's passing, that pastor called Pansey and said he wanted his dollar back! It was apparent even to him and so far away that Pansey had found the real thing. Ted is survived by his loving wife, Pansey; his six children: Natalie (Ward) Rasmussen, Annette (Jim) Weston, Stephen (Hallie Hall) Saunders, Julia Hines, Jonathan Saunders, Lisa (Lonnie) Casa De Calvo; and his siblings, Janet Saunders and Gregory Saunders. He also leaves Pansey's children Coply Henry, Michelle Henry-King, and Myron Henry. Additionally, Ted is survived by 15 grandchildren and 12 great-grandchildren. As Psalm 127: 3-5 says: Children are a gift from the Lord; they are a reward from Him. Children born to a young man are like arrows in a warrior's hands. How joyful is the man whose quiver is full of them!

Tributes

Luther Everett Saunders

June 6, 1931 - February 21, 2023

Tributes

Luther Everett Saunders

June 6, 1931 - February 21, 2023

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