Couple reunites after courtship 40 years ago

BY Kelly Lopez

Newlyweds Sandy Parker Lantry and Mark Lantry relax at a recent Canyon Lake function. The two high school sweethearts were married in February.

Sandy Parker Lantry and Mark Lantry were high school sweethearts in the 1970s, but did not tie the knot until just two months ago. The couple was married February 22 on Canyon Lake’s Treasure Island, where a small ceremony, with just family in attendance, was held.

Sandy and Mark first met as high schoolers over 40 years ago. They were very much in love and dated on and off for over 7 years when Sandy, 22 at the time, finally broke off their romance. They sadly went their separate ways, convinced the relationship was over.

After several decades and having raised their own families, Sandy and Mark met again. Sandy had always been good friends with Mark’s mom, Barbara McCrea, a relationship that began when she was young and in high school. Barbara continued to cherish the bond that she had with Sandy and, through the years, followed Sandy on Facebook and mailed her an annual Christmas card.

When Sandy’s relationship status changed to single on Facebook, matchmaker Barbara quickly contacted her son, Mark. It didn’t take him long to send a Facebook friend request to Sandy.

Sandy Parker Lantry and Mark Lantry pose on their wedding day at Treasure Island in Canyon Lake.

Sandy and Mark’s old romantic flame slowly began to burn again. They took it slow, they said, wanting to make sure they liked each other as well as loved each other. After Sandy and Mark became friends on Facebook, they eventually went out on a simple date in March 2018. Over coffee at Panera in Menifee, Sandy and Mark had fun getting to know each other again. It had been decades since they had dated.

They started meeting regularly to visit at the fireplace outside of the Menifee Starbucks, but soon they were going on dates to the movies, enjoying the Canyon Lake pool and parks, concerts and even hula-hooping down the aisles of Target, just like high school kids.

While in high school Sandy Parker Lantry and Mark Lantry are all smiles in this photo from the 1970s.

As their relationship progressed, they started going to church together and were spending more time with each others’ children and grandchildren. They were aware of the need to get their families on board, which they said was swift and unanimous.

“My daughters embraced Mark and his son embraced me,” Sandy said. “Our family has grown through love.”

Mark finally proposed to Sandy on Nov. 14, her birthday. The proposal came at a Fleetwood Mac Tribute concert, Fleetwood Mac being a favorite band of theirs since their high school days.

They were married in March on Treasure Island. Sandy and Mark now enjoy life together in Canyon Lake every day. Sandy enjoys gardening and being a grandmother and Mark still surfs.

“I wake up grateful every day,” Sandy said. “My cup runneth over.” Sandy loves that her family has grown so much, “I went from having one grandchild three years ago, to now having 13!”

Sandy Parker Lantry and Mark Lantry enjoy a formal event during their high school dating days 40 years ago. They were married in February after becoming reacquainted recently.

Love has come full circle for Mark and Sandy, but life has also come full circle for Sandy in other ways as well. Sandy loved Canyon Lake for many years, long before she lived here. She used to go with her daughters to a friend’s house on Spray Drive almost weekly. Her kids were young at the time, and she says she fell in love with Canyon Lake.

Her love for the community finally brought her to Canyon Lake to live when she bought a house and moved here on July 4, 2017. She bought a beautiful mission-style home, which she said was her dream home. Now Sandy is living the life she said she had always hoped for, but did not expect.

Her daughter is in the process of buying a house down the street from her old friend’s place on Spray Drive.

Mark’s son Jeff and his wife, Allie, followed in Mark and Sandy’s footsteps. They, too, met in high school, but went their separate ways and then reconnected 20 years later and were married just two weeks before Mark and Sandy.

“True love always wins,” Sandy said and hopes the message spreads by telling her incredible love story.

medley and combined songs from Phantom of the Opera and Les Miserables and wrapped up with Bohemian Rhapsody. The concert was extremely well received, Larry said.

Lorilee loves being the Choraleers director as much as they love having her. She said she loves the fact that the group is multigenerational. Members range from 12 years old to singers in their 80s. She also loves that the choir is community oriented, like herself.

A typical rehearsal is held on Monday evening downstairs from the Canyon Lake Library. During normal rehearsal time, Lorilee can be heard saying such encouraging phrases as “Do you guys love this?” and “That’s gorgeous.” She starts practice with vocal warm ups and even some physical exercises. The choir is classified into groups, such as soprano, alto, tenor, baritone and bass.

During rehearsal, Lorilee energetically moves from one group to the next, moved by the sounds of the choir in order to magically hone its sounds. Lorilee, having perfect pitch, can easily move from one section to another and even sing each part in order to demonstrate what each person needs to do.

Rehearsals are full of encouragement and fun. She directs choir members to “create a thunderstorm,” as she snaps and claps her hands energetically. She uses imagery to help the choir members visualize the sounds that they need to replicate.

“From the ground up, bring some soil with ya,’” Lorilee said during one rehearsal to help choraleers get just the right sound. “You’re just still water, like you want to go skiing on,” she said to the bass section to help keep it on one note.

Lorilee is not just about compliments and kindness, though. She takes her choir directing very seriously. Even though she sees her choir as a family, she can be heard frequently shushing her choir members in order to get their undivided attention. Lorilee is so tuned into the sounds of the Choraleers, she can easily pick out and then correct an inaccurate note, word or inflection.

“I had music my whole life,” she said. “My mom taught me piano at age 4.” She remembers singing three-part harmony with her sisters when she was 6 years old. She realized at a young age that music was the common thread among her and many people in her life.

When she was in high school, her choir teacher suspected she had perfect pitch and sent her to the band teacher to learn some music theory. When Lorilee entered college she studied music theory and she said “it was like they were speaking my language.”

Lorilee studied music at the University of Puget Sound and Moody Bible Institute. She realized when she was at Moody Bible Institute that she loved conducting and arranging music. Later in her life she went on to study music at Trinity College of Music in the United Kingdom. She received her Master’s in Music Theory there. She was also part of the renowned Halle Choir while in England.

Her most recent accomplishment is being awarded a seat with the famous Angel City Chorale. It is a 180-voice choir in Los Angeles. Only three altos were added for the season and Lorilee was one of them. She was also asked to be a section leader, which means she is a director for her section of the choir.