By Kristine Thomas
The clues throughout his house and yard reveal what’s important to Dr. Clint Sanford.
There’s a stethoscope hanging on the knob of a kitchen cabinet, a high chair in the corner of the kitchen nook, a putting green and garden in his backyard, books arranged neatly on shelves, and lots of photographs of his wife, Sandy, and their sons and daughters-in-law and four grandchildren.
A quiet man, Sanford would prefer to let his actions speak for him. He’s well known for his dedication to his family, friends, colleagues and patients.
As he moves onto the new chapter of life known as retirement, Sanford took a moment to pause and reflect on his 38 years of practicing medicine in Silverton.
A great deal has changed since he and Sandy moved to Silverton in 1976, he said.
“There’s a lot more specialists now than when I began,” he said. “When I started, we did a little bit of everything.”
Growing up in Washington, Sanford said there was a point in his life he considered becoming a lawyer.
“It’s a bit of an irony I chose to study science, especially when I got my first and only B in high school in my freshman science class,” he said. “You think that would have discouraged me from studying science.”
Sanford said it wasn’t until his junior year at Seattle Pacific University that he decided he wanted to become a doctor. “I was studying physics and I started thinking about what a physicist would do and thought it would be sitting in a lab all day doing experiments,” he said. “I like working with people and I wanted a job that combined science and people. Medicine would combined science with people.”
He and Sandy met when they were both juniors in college – she was a student at Western Oregon. They were both attended a student government conference in Los Angeles and met through mutual friends. Their courtship started with Clint sending Sandy a card and her responding with a letter. They were married Dec. 27, 1969, recently celebrating their 45th wedding anniversary. For their honeymoon, Clint surprised Sandy with a trip to Disneyland.
Laughing Sandy recalls how they had to quickly drive down to California and be back in Washington by Jan. 1 to manage an apartment complex. He received his medical degree from the University of Washington and completed his residency at the University of Kentucky. They chose to live in Silverton because it was close to Sandy’s family in Albany and Clint’s family in Vancouver.
As he says goodbye to patients, Clint marvels at how he has cared for four generations of families and has delivered the children of children he delivered.
“My medical career has been such a variety of things. When I first started we didn’t have an emergency room or specialists like we do now,” he said. “It’s something I have really enjoyed.”
While he’s looking forward to having more time to spend golfing and gardening, what he cherishes the most is he will be able to spend more time with his family. He and Sandy have already planned some vacations. They both enjoy being grandparents. Their son Jeff and his wife Hayla are parents to Kellen, 7, and Hudson, 3, and their son Jon and his wife, Amanda, are parents to Connor, 4 and Katie, 18 months.
Sandy said their grandchildren love visiting them because they can see the fish and turtles in the pond, to play on the basketball court or hit golf balls on the putting green.
“Obviously, family is pretty important to me,” Clint said.
