Patricia Sally Drew Winchenbach passed away on Aug. 21, 2024, at her home in Sedgwick, age 81, due to Alzheimer’s disease. Sally was blessed to pass at home while surrounded by family. Sally left behind her husband, Kenneth Edwin Winchenbach, who later passed away in February 2025.
Born on April 4, 1943, in Sharon, Mass., to parents Harry Sylvester Drew and Florence Elizabeth Dann Drew, Sally spent the rest of her childhood in Blue Hill, graduating from George Stevens Academy. She attended University of Maine at Farmington before marrying her first husband, Fred Sprague, and having two daughters. In 1971, she married Kenneth Edwin Winchenbach, who adopted Sally’s daughters, and together they had two more children.
Sally spent many years as a mother, homemaker, and caregiver. She had to put up with a great deal raising four children, more than those grown children like to admit or could ever apologize for. And yet she remained always an enduring presence for them, and was a loving caregiver for her grandchildren.
When not caring for her children, Sally touched lives in her work as well. She met her husband, Ken, while working at Liberty Mutual Insurance. As her children aged, she worked at Exeter Public Library and the Congregational Church in Exeter doing bookkeeping. She volunteered in the public school, tutored, and was a driving presence in the Friends of the Exeter Public Library organization.
Ken and Sally were together for 53 years before Sally’s passing. The couple met while living in Portsmouth, N.H., spent five years in Georgia, and then settled in Exeter, N.H. for the next 20 years. Ken and Sally retired in 2002 to their quiet, secluded home, “DreWink Woods,” in Sedgwick. Surrounded by woods, wildlife, blueberry fields, and Sally’s gardens, Ken and Sally hosted their ever-growing family of children, grandchildren, and great-grandchildren at DreWink Woods.
Sally spent her final days with her husband, Ken, as well as her four children: Sara Winchenbach, of Southwest Harbor, Shari Whelan, of Sedgwick, Karl Winchenbach, of Epping, N.H., and Ken Walden, of Bath. She is survived as well by her many grandchildren and great-grandchildren. She was predeceased by her first husband, Fred Sprague. Sally and Ken always welcomed others into their lives, their home, and their family, and so leave behind many, many others who have been touched by their love, generosity, and care.
Sally believed in “making my corner of the world more beautiful,” and she did that in so many ways. She tended her vegetable gardens, flower gardens, and houseplants with care and passion. She did photography, watercolor, sketching, knitting, and crochet, and even when afflicted with Alzheimer’s disease found delight, comfort, and expression in her colored pencils. She loved to read, to learn, and to grow. Her grandchildren were gifted with her artwork, as well as her Tina Turner dance parties.
Though her laugh and her smile are missed, the world still remains a brighter place because of Sally. In lieu of flowers, the family requests that donations be made to Northern Light Home Care and Hospice Foundation, P.O. Box 679, Portland, ME 04104, to support those who helped to make Sally’s passing a beautiful one. A celebration of life will be held for Sally and Ken at their home on Saturday, May 24.
