Adrienne Karen Sandstedt, age 67, of Long Beach, CA passed away peacefully on September 3, 2026 while surrounded by family.

Adrienne was born on January 2, 1959 in New York City to Kenneth and Evangeline Maier. She attended Packer Collegiate Institute in Brooklyn and then Brockport College in upstate New York where she studied Theater Arts. She always had a wanderlust and after leaving Brockport she lived in London, then worked for several years as a croupier for Carnival Cruises in the Bahamas and Mexico. She also lived for a time in India and Nepal where she led trekking tours in the Himalayas.

Adrienne also had a career as a successful advertising sales executive and eventually as sales manager for Golf Digest magazine in Los Angeles and in New York. During her time in Los Angeles, she devoted much of her free time to the children’s charity Plan International as their west coast fundraiser, organizing charity dinners and events. After many years balancing both sales and charity work, Adrienne left sales to devote her time to a profession that allowed her to give back to the community. She returned to school and earned a master's degree in education from Chapman University and became a middle school teacher with a specialty in the sciences.

Adrienne taught for 25 years at Lindsey Academy and then at Marshall Academy of the Arts in Long Beach CA. Adrienne continued to channel the boundless energy she brought to every stage of her life into teaching. In 2016 California State Assembly presented her an award as a Teacher of the Year for Long Beach. The award was for her outstanding efforts in teaching earth science and in MESA curriculum. Under her excellent tutelage, she and her students entered and won several science competitions and were able to travel to Hawaii, the NASA Space Camp in Alabama as well as an overseas trip to Space Camp in Izmir Turkey.

It was during her time as a teacher that Adrienne met and married Edward Sandstedt who was the love of her life. They were married for 22 happy years and enjoyed hosting family and friends at their homes in Long Beach and Indian Wells She was active in the Women’s Club in her Indian Wells community and volunteered to lead the Book Club and later served as the club Historian. She and Ed also enjoyed traveling throughout the USA and overseas. During the past few years, Adrienne was diagnosed with cancer and faced the disease with remarkable courage and grace.

Adrienne is survived by her husband Ed Sandstedt, her sister Madeleine Said and brother Ken Maier and their spouses, her niece Ariana Said and her loving cousins and their families.