Sandra Olavsrud Smith

Sandra Olavsrud Smith passed peacefully after fighting dementia for several years. She was under the amazing care of Candle Light Cove and Talbot Hospice. Sandra was born to Abraham and Nettie Berlin in Richmond, VA where she spent her first several years while her father worked for the U.S. Patent Office. She was in Richmond until the Patent Office relocated their headquarters and the family moved to Silver Spring, MD. This is where Sandra and her beloved sister Deborah would spend her formative years until Sandra moved to Forest Hills, NY to attend The High School for the Performing Arts to pursue her love for dance. After high school, Sandra attended The University of Maryland where she made lifelong friendships. In those years she met some of her dearest friends, Susie Shewchuk, Harriett Klun, and their families who remained by her side her entire life. As a young adult, Sandra moved back to New York City, working at various Madison Avenue advertising firms, this is where she met and married talent agent, Robert Friedman and had her first son, Grant. Grant was the joy of her life, and she stayed very busy as a working mother and traveling talent agent wife to Bob. Sandra and Bob’s working lives ultimately led them in different directions. Sandra became a consultant instructing business users on the use of computers which took her to Europe. This is where she fell head over heels for a Norwegian man, Svein Olavsrud. She moved to Oslo, Norway where she and Svein had two sons, Thor and Stein. She instantly became a loved member of Svein’s Norwegian family. She loved their time in Norway learning to become a “Norwegian Housewife” and mother. After living in Norway for about eight years, Svein’s business brought the family to Easton, MD. Easton was where Sandra and Svein would raise their three treasured sons, Grant, Thor, and Stein. Sandra worked at local accounting firms, played tennis, and made lots of friends over the years. Four years after losing her beloved husband Svein, Sandra was introduced to James Smith by his daughter and son-in-law Shari and Steve Osche. Sandra and Jim married and Jim swept Sandra off her feet to his dream location, The Northern Neck of VA. Sandra and Jim built a house together, made lots of new friends, and enjoyed entertaining family and friends. Sandra and Jim traveled to Easton monthly over their sixteen-year marriage to spend time with their grandchildren Gigi and Nina Friedman, Lucy and Chase Olavsrud, and Isabel Ochse. These grandchildren were adored by them and looked forward to grandma and grandpa’s special visits. Grandma Sandra was known for baking cookies with Gigi and Nina, reading books with Isabel, getting manicures with Lucy, and attending Chase’s hockey games. After Jim’s passing in 2019, Sandra moved back to Easton to be close to her family that would love and care for her. In her final years, Sandra and her dog patches were inseparable. Sandra leaves behind her children, Grant Friedman and wife Dayana Rodriguez, daughterin-law Jini Friedman, son Thor Olavsrud, youngest son Stein Olavsrud and wife Elizabeth Olavsrud, five grandchildren, her sister Deborah and brother-in-law Paul Engel and their son Gregory, Steve and Shari Ochse, Paul and Faith Carroll, her nieces from Norway, AnnKariin, Mona, and Gry and their dear families, plus many friends she met throughout her lifetime. All will remember Sandra, her stylish vibe, and loving heart. A visitation to celebrate the life of Sandra will be held on Saturday the 20th of December from 11:00 AM – 12:00 PM at Fellows, Helfenbein, and Newnam Funeral Home in Easton, MD. A burial will follow at The Oxford Cemetery.

Sandra Olavsrud Smith

October 15, 1941 - December 6, 2025