About
The SAS Foundation for Cancer Research is a nonforprofit, 501c3 organization. Founded in 2006 by Mary Ann Hrywnak, the SAS Foundation was created in memory of a Sonya Sinicki, a dear family member who lost her battle with pancreatic cancer. The mission of the SAS Foundation is to seek out potential cures for cancer by funding relative research and to alleviate the impact of cancer. Since 2006, the foundation has awarded 1.3 million dollars to fund cancer research.
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Sonya A. Sinicki
May 9,1939 - June 6, 2006
Personality, Presence and Purpose. Sonya embodied all these qualities and much more. She was a devoted daughter, wife, mother, grandmother and friend. Wherever she went, people were drawn to her for her wit, her joy in the moment, and her compassion for people in pain. The oldest grandchild in her mother’s family, she was adored by her grandparents and in turn lavished attention and love on her younger cousins.
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Sonya’s was devoted to her husband, Dick, her childhood sweetheart, and was example of enduring love. She delighted in her daughters, Debra and Leane, and adored her grandson, Christopher. Whether at work, in her church or community, she became lifelong friends with colleagues and neighbors.
Whatever task Sonya undertook, she did with style, precision, and passion – from the hand smocked dresses she crafted for her daughter, to the foods cooked and presented with flair, to her home decorated with an unerring eye for detail.
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The true depth of her character was revealed in the way she faced her brief illness with pancreatic cancer. She was calm, resolute, brave, and typically self-effacing. Always putting others first, she asked that her funeral be delayed until after her beloved grandson’s high school graduation so that he could enjoy this important day.