Sanni K. Sundelin left this world at age 34 on Good Friday, April 7, at Tobey Hospital in Wareham, Mass., after a brief illness. She was born on July 12, 1988 at Brigham and Women’s Hospital in Boston, where she remained in the neonatal ICU for a month. When she was finally able to come home to West Barnstable, Mass., it was with nursing help. Sanni had many medical issues, and survived several serious operations over the years. Most of her primary schooling took place on Cape Cod, Mass., where she developed into a vivacious, curious, smart, funny, mischievous, and very verbal individual. She received a clinical diagnosis of high-functioning autism at 9 years old, but that was not an indication of her special abilities. Sanni could read at the age of 3, had the memory of an elephant, read the dictionary for fun, and never ceased to astonish people with her vast vocabulary.
At Crotched Mountain School in New Hampshire, for students with autism, Sanni flourished academically and made many friends from the age of 14 to 23. Drama was Sanni’s calling, and she responded by assuming the lead role in many plays, where she memorized everyone’s lines in a matter of days. She could often be found offstage coaching her classmates who were frozen in the grips of stage fright.
After graduating with a high school diploma, Sanni was placed in a group home on Cape Cod. For the last few years she was enrolled in the Gottschall Access Program at Bristol Community College, a unique college program for adults with autism. Her teachers considered her a leader in all her classes, where she excelled in every area.
Sanni adored her parents, a feeling that was reciprocal. She was a gentle, kind, and loving soul who accepted people without judgment. Although she lacked a verbal filter, it was refreshing to know how she really felt about things.
Sanni leaves behind her parents, Patti (Fallon) Sundelin, of East Sandwich, Mass., and David Sundelin and stepmother, Susan Handel, of Round Pond; grandmother, Ruth Stone, of Florida; two uncles; two aunts; and three cousins. A private interment and celebration of Sanni’s life will take place on Cape Cod in the summer.
Donations in Sanni’s memory may be made out to Community Autism Resources, ATTN: Kate Dansereau, Gottschall Access Program, 33 James Reynolds Road, Suite C, Swansea, MA 02777.
