AUBURN – Sandra Lane died on Nov. 20, after a courageous year-long fight with cancer.

She was born and raised mostly in Lynn, Mass., although she lived with her parents in Scotland during one year of high school. She moved to Maine shortly after she graduated from the University of New Hampshire in 1962, and has lived in Lewiston or Auburn ever since.

She lived in her beloved cottage on Taylor Pond with her life partner, Jim Chapman, and her adoring Shih-tzu, Princess, until the last month of her illness.

Sandy was a vivacious, optimistic person with many close, loving friends and even more fond acquaintances. She loved meeting her friends for coffee and conversation at Sam’s on weekday mornings and in fact appeared in some of their commercials.

After retiring from a 25-year career as a social worker for Maine’s Department of Human Services, she furthered the cause of literacy by volunteering with Literacy Volunteers in Auburn and as a Bookreach reader for the Auburn Public Library.

In her capacity as a notary public, she officiated at many weddings and each one mattered greatly to her. She was a member of the East Auburn Baptist Church.

The lights of Sandy’s life in recent years were her granddaughters, Sawyer Templeton of Lewiston and Jasmine Lane of San Diego, Calif.

She is also survived by her mother, Alberta Hagan of New Bern, N.C.; and her children, Karen Lane of Lewiston and Scott Lane of San Diego.