Sändra Washington was born on October 6th, 1960, in Columbus, Ohio. She and her identical twin sister, Sharon, spent their first four years in Westerville, a small community just north of the city. Then, the family moved to a nearby town called Worthington. In fulfillment of their father’s dream to raise his children in the country, Sändra and Sharon spent their childhoods roaming through apple orchards and ravines, generating a love of the outdoors.
The summer before tenth grade, on a trip with the high school science program, Sändra came out to herself as a lesbian after falling “madly in crush” with another student. A few years later, she began going to local gay bars with her friends. Surrounded by older, more experienced queer people, Sändra found safety, community, and lifelong friendship. She likens the environment to a “cocoon.” Years later, she and Sharon, who came out as a lesbian as well, would ride together in a pride parade in New York City.
Throughout Sändra’s childhood, her parents filled their home with music. At large family gatherings, performances were mandatory. Cousins brought flutes and violins; Sändra and Sharon brought their voices. Sändra’s voice also accompanied her to Girl Scout Camp, where she served as a song leader. In their senior year, Sändra and Sharon began studying voice at Fort Hayes Vocational Academy. In college, Sändra started writing and producing music; by the time she was in graduate school, she and Sharon were touring together as the Washington Sisters. When she speaks about performance, she describes it as the only place where she has felt completely vulnerable and absolutely safe at the same time.
A significant aspect of Sändra’s musical practice is rooted in her love for communities of strong women. Her deep appreciation is evident in her stories about Girl Scouts; in her affection for the Michigan Womyn’s Music Festival, which she describes as “magical”; and in her anecdotes about the former first lady of Ohio, Dagmar Celeste.
After graduate school, Sändra began working for the Ohio Department of Natural Resources as a field ecologist. She balanced this career with her hectic tour schedule, gathering up comp days to take two or three weeks off at a time. Then, in 1990, after a year of long-distance dating her now-wife, Sändra packed up her life in Columbus and drove a U-Haul to Lincoln, Nebraska, where she’s lived ever since.
After the move, Sändra took a step back from music and began her 25-year career with the National Park Service. Over the course of her career, Sändra aided in the creation of national monuments, worked closely with the building of a trails network, and participated in the intensive, year-long process of rewriting the agency’s entire policy manual. She became involved in her new hometown, too; in Lincoln, she was appointed to the parks and recreation advisory board and later served on the Lincoln-Lancaster Planning Commission.
In 2019, Sändra was chosen to fill an open at-large seat on the Lincoln City Council; in May of 2021, she was re-elected, making her the first Black lesbian elected to any office in Nebraska. Sändra’s vibrant story exemplifies a profound commitment to nature, to public service, and, above all, to community.