Rosemary Sandifer

Rosemary Sandifer 86, of Spring, Texas passed away peacefully on Tuesday, May 19th, 2026. Rosemary was born in Brooklyn, New York to the late John and Mary (Lehane) Baker. Though she moved away from Brooklyn in her early thirties, there was always a place in her heart for her New York heritage that stayed with her throughout her life. Although Rosemary accomplished a great number of things in her life, her greatest accomplishment was unquestionably her dedication to her role as a mother to two boys. Having joined Shell Oil Company in its Legal Department in the late 60’s, in 1970, she made the difficult decision to accept a role offered to her in Houston that meant moving away from her family and building a new life for herself and her two boys. She never looked back and proceeded to establish a foundation of family and stability that shaped the lives of her immediate family and generations which followed. Rosemary met the love of her life in Gene Sandifer and married in 1985. She retired from a successful career at Shell Oil in the early 90’s, and she and Gene enjoyed many happy years in retirement supporting their respective families but also enjoying their travels and many volunteer efforts, including the St. Vincent DePaul Food Pantry in Houston as well as coordinating the Meals on Wheels program and administering the Outreach Farm during their time living in Pawleys Island, South Carolina. They were active volunteers in their parish churches, primarily St. Jerome in Houston and Precious Blood in Pawleys Island. Throughout her life, to the very end, Rosemary sought out opportunities to support her family and remained very close to multiple generations of children, stepchildren, grandchildren and great-grandchildren. The Christmas dinners at which multiple generations of family would gather for “Me-Ma’s meatballs and spaghetti” were legendary. Rosemary was a devoted friend to many and was remarkable in her determination to stay in touch with friends and family despite the separation of many hundreds if not thousands of miles. She will be sorely missed. In addition to her parents, Rosemary was predeceased by her brother, William (Billy) Baker and stepson, Galen Sandifer. Rosemary is survived by her two sons: James McHugh (Annie) and John McHugh (Coleen) (the two boys who joined her on that trip to Texas almost 56 years ago!) as well as her sister Catherine Gillespie, her stepson Gene (Sharon) ; her grandchildren Erin (John) and Corey McHugh; and the primary source of joy in her life during her final years, her great granddaughter, Charlotte. She was also a devoted “MeMa” to each of Gene’s grandchildren and great grandchildren. She had numerous nieces, nephews and cousins who will miss her greatly.

Rosemary Sandifer

May 19, 2026