Wanda Sproles

Born in Castlewood, a small town in western Virginia, Wanda Osborne, with the distinction of being student council association president, graduated from Castlewood High School in 1956 and immediately married Max Sproles, a young man whom she had known since childhood. While her husband completed his college education at VPI, Wanda worked in the college bookstore office. Once Max graduated, he embarked upon a career as a civil engineer with the old Bureau of Public Roads and for many years the couple lived in different towns scattered between the east and west coasts of the United States. During some of this time Wanda randomly took college level courses when available, an endeavor that ceased with the birth of their first daughter. 

In 1970, Wanda and Max (who died in August of 2015) settled in Reston, Virginia, thereby ending their life of relocations. They raised two daughters while Max advanced in his career and Wanda balanced her time between domestic responsibilities and volunteer activities, the latter primarily at her daughters’ schools and with her church’s outreach program. 

When you meet Wanda, ask her about her volunteer work; a big smile will appear on her face as she relates stories from her varied experiences. She will tell you that she is proud of the time she spent contributing to the quality of the education received by her daughters and she will also let you know that equally important were the thousands of hours that she spent driving cancer patients to therapy. Through this experience, she met individuals who inspired her in many ways; she feels that she gained more than she gave to all those she chauffeured. On a lighter side, her conversation will turn to her time as a docent at the Kennedy Center and her amusing encounters with school groups. 

As an active Episcopalian, Wanda knew for some time that she wanted to live in a Westminster Canterbury community and two factors made it easy for her to decide on Lynchburg. First, it cuts in half the travel time to visit a younger sister in southwest Virginia. Second, she has been impressed by the friendliness and welcoming atmosphere she has experienced here when visiting and that made her eager to move, make new friends, and participate in WC activities. She brings with her interests in reading, needlework, and gardening, plus pictures of her three granddaughters.