“I’m not sure that I deserve this any more than other TK graduates, but I am grateful,” she said. “What makes this especially meaningful is that this school and village isn’t just part of my story - it’s part of my family’s history. My dad, my aunts, my sister and my son all went to TK as well and grew up here in Middleville.”
“When I think about my time at TK, I don’t just think about the classes, it’s about the people - my friends, my classmates and the teachers - all very special people….Thank you again for this honor, for your kindness, and for being a place that shapes not just individual students, but entire families.”
Her son, Nick Wake (Class of 2005), introduced her. “She is truly someone who lives a good life and thrives simply by giving back. Today, she is a successful, semi-retired businesswoman that travels, volunteers, and still finds time to have dinner with Grandpa just about every night. Truly, her life is a testament to the values inculcated at TK.”
Sandi graduated in the top 10 in her high school class of 1978. She has a bachelor's degree in music education from Michigan State University and a master’s degree in marketing from Davenport, where she also served as adjunct professor for a short time. Today she is the owner of a franchise business called CarePatrol that helps – at no - seniors and families find solutions for living arrangements and care.
Nick said CarePatrol started when in 2013 his mom was being “reorganized” from her 20-plus year career. It led her to buying a business and running it herself as a way to help seniors.
“I struggled to understand that move,” said Nick. “Her previous job wasn’t in healthcare, so this was an interesting move. I was supportive, but still skeptical. Still, she was confident that things would work out.”
“When she started CarePatrol, she settled on a very simple principle: Do the right thing, and the money will follow. She didn’t cut corners, she worked hard into the night, and powered forward with the grit, determination, and integrity that is the hallmark of a TK grad.”
Nick said it didn’t take long before he noticed something about his mother and the job she was doing. “She seemed happier, even with the longer hours, than she had been at her old job. I wondered if it was because she was charting her own course. She told me it was because she was making a difference just by doing her job, a difference in the lives of real people in need of help. She would work hard trying to find the best solution for folks and she was rewarded greatly when it all worked out. The thanks that she would get from families was enough for her to move mountains.”
In the last 13 years, CarePatrol has helped nearly 7,500 families in Barry, Kent and Ionia counties. She now has 12 employees and provides services in 12 Michigan counties. Her office has been recognized as the MVP of the franchise system twice and was the top performing franchise in 2024, out of two countries and 230 odd offices in Canada and the United States.
“The one she started here in Middleville was number one,” said Nick, who joined his mother in the company as part owner in 2023.
Beyond her work with CarePatrol, Sandi has helped charter the state chapter of the National Placement and Referral Alliance to help lift standards in the senior advising industry. She helped start a non-profit organization called the Michigan Alliance for Healthy Aging, which has raised tens of thousands of dollars for Alzheimer’s research each year.
She has also established a scholarship fund with the goal of helping students going into heavy machinery mechanics in honor of her father. And she was recently appointed to the Middleville Village Council.
“I think where a lot of her drive comes from can be found in many in this room. This community. The values we all share. Most of you know her father/my grandfather, Richard Stager. He is a TK Grad and one of the hardest working people I know. He’s someone who would drop what he was working on just to give you a hand if you needed it. Her sister/my aunt, (Kim Pommier Class of 1974) who served in the US Air Force and went on to teach. All of whom are TK alumni, powered by the same values and proud to be so.”
“Today, I get the honor of saying these things wearing three hats: as a fellow TK alum, as a business partner, and as a son. I couldn’t be more proud to stand here today to offer these words and to congratulate such a worthy recipient of this honor. Congratulations mother.”
Sandi was surrounded by family at the front table. She thanked Nick for his introduction. “I don’t know what to say about him without sounding like one of those very proud and obnoxious mothers. I love that we work together now.”
She mentioned her sister Kim. “She gets special kudos, as she always wanted to be a teacher and after 20 years in the Air force, she taught high school special education math, which I think sounds like it would be very hard.”
She also thanked her aunt Ann (class of 1962) for being at the banquet. “She was first in her graduating class and was the homecoming queen. Smart, beautiful and popular - the trifecta.”
Lastly, she thanked her father, Dick Stager (Class of 1948). “For those of you doing the math, that makes him 96 years old. I’m guessing there are some of you who know him, as he’s fixed your garden tractor or farm tractor, or maybe your bulldozer. He and my mom were wonderful parents to my sister and me.”
Wake now joins a growing list of honored alumni by the TKAA. The award is presented annually at the alumni dinner.