Joyce S. Sando

Joyce Seewald Sando, age 78, of Haverford, PA, died on October 20, 2026, surrounded by family and loved ones. Joyce was preceded in death by her husband, Ralph S. Sando, M.D., to whom she was happily married for thirty-seven years. Joyce is survived by her oldest son, Ralph S. Sando, Jr. (daughter-in-law Claire Streibert, and grandchildren Brittany Leigh and Berkeley Sando and step-grandchildren Donald and Caroline Cooney); her daughter, Holly Sando Rieck (her late son-in-law, Donald Rieck, Jr., and grandchildren Donny and Emily); and her son, Blake S. Sando (daughter-in-law Jennifer, and grandchildren Lizzie, Blakey and Teddy). Joyce felt enormous pride in the family she and her late husband created together.

Joyce was a lifelong lover of music and the arts. She and her late husband were subscribers and regular attendees at the performances of the Philadelphia Orchestra, the Opera Company of Philadelphia, the Walnut Street Theater, and the Philly Pops. The Philadelphia Museum of Art was also supported and enjoyed by them for several decades. Enthusiastic and adventurous travelers, they frequently joined other avid supporters of the Museum on trips throughout the United States, Mexico, Europe and Asia. Joyce also enjoyed countless rounds of golf, afternoons of tennis, adventures on too many ski slopes to recall, and precious moments sailing on the Chesapeake with her family when the kids were younger. After her husband’s death, Joyce devoted her time with committee work for multiple exhibits at The Franklin Institute, highlighted by a most memorable trip with TFI President and other benefactors to Egypt and Jordan. With her own family, she encouraged family Thanksgivings in Florida on the Gulf Coast and gathered her children and their families on group trips to Jamaica, Punta Cana, and Mexico. As her grandchildren grew, she enjoyed taking them to countless shows, concerts, and dinners out. “Nanasan,” as she was affectionately referred to, indelibly marked her grandchildren’s lives with numerous cultural experiences, punctuated by special trips to England, Italy, or Disney and unending amounts of love, chocolate, and attention.

Socially, Joyce was a proud member of the Overbrook Golf Club, Merion Cricket Club, the Union League of Philadelphia (for which she served many years with the Lincoln Foundation), the Acorn Club, the Athenaeum Club, and the Yale Club of NYC. She shared incredible laughs at numerous gatherings and events at each of these clubs that often were her homes away from home.

Raised in Northeast Philadelphia, Joyce was the only child of Kathryn (nee Staib) and Lester Seewald. She graduated from Gwynedd Mercy Academy in 1966, and Manhattanville College in 1970 as an English major with a minor in Music.

Joyce, an only child, is survived by many cousins of the Seewald family, whose parents all hailed from Williamsport, PA. She is also survived by seven of her eight brothers- and sisters-in-law and their families: Carol Sando of Delaware, Marilu Sutter (Fran) of Gladwyne, James Sando (Barbara) of Colorado, Gregg Sando (Sarah Havens) of London, England and Vermont, Robert Sando of Florida, Nancie Pomponio (Ross) of Newtown Square, and Laura Sando (Pedro) of Madrid, Spain, and all of their children and grandchildren alike. She is predeceased by her brother-in-law Richard Sando (Holly) of Philadelphia and his children and grandchildren. Chuck Pennoni, her beloved companion, and his family all share in her loss.

A funeral mass will be held Friday, November 6, 2026, at 11:00 am at our Mother of Good Counsel on Pennswood Rd. in Bryn Mawr, PA. Friends may call at 9:30 am before the service. Friends may also call the evening prior, on Thursday, November 5th, at Donohue Funeral Home at 3300 West Chester Pike in Newtown Square, PA, from 6:00-8:00 pm. Interment at Calvary Cemetery.

In lieu of flowers, donations may be made in her memory to the Fox Chase Cancer Center, ℅ Institutional Advancement, 333 Cottman Avenue, Philadelphia, PA 19111, or by giving online at Foxchase.org/giving.