Inside The Life of Sean Sandgren

With a life full of both vast changes and steady traditions, it’s no wonder that Sean Sandgren is not, as a great musician once said, ”just another brick in the wall.” With all of the moving, sports, and family, Sean Sandgren, a freshman student at Virginia Tech is bound to be more than cliché or ordinary.

When I first began my interview process with Sean, I came across my first stereotype about him. I knew he lived in Philadelphia, PA, so I asked, “born and raised in Philly right?”
His response was, “not even close!” I was confused, but Sean explained how he and his family had moved four different times before arriving in Philadelphia.

Sean was born to Debbie and Glenn Sandgren on October 8, 1988 in Detroit, MI. Sean lived in the inner-city, on 10 mile road. Two blocks from the 8 mile road that is found in Eminem’s movie 8 Mile. Since Sean only lived in Detroit until he was four-years-old, the city life had little impact on the man he is today.

After leaving Detroit, Sean’s family headed for Clarkson, MI. Clarkson is about fifty miles north of Detroit, as well as a little west. When Sean’s Parents made this move, they found jobs that were above par. Sean’s mom worked as Director of Institutional sales and marketing at Comerica Bank; and Sean’s dad worked as an Automotive Industry Manager for GE Plastics. Sean’s parents would be required to work long hours for these jobs, leaving Sean at home with a nanny. Sean describes his nannies as, “foreign”, and “second mothers with foreign habits.” Sean said that his nannies would sometimes beat him when he was acting up. When I asked him about this he said, “nothing bad, just like your parents would when you were a kid.”

After Clarkson came Cincinnati, OH. Sean lived with his family in Cinicinatti for eighteen months, followed by a move to Columbus, OH. Sean lived in Ohio from age six to age ten. Sean’s environment suddenly changed from city life to a rural setting.

In this rural environment, Sean picked up hobbies that the city did not permit. Some examples are motorcycles, paintball, hunting, and other outdoor activities. Sean would go hunting for rabbits or squirrels on a daily basis, as well as hanging out with friends.

Sean once tried to clear a tree in order to build a tree-house. He decided he would burn the limbs that needed clearing for the hangout. This harmless story of a kid at play took a turn for the worse when the fire grew to an uncontrollable blaze. Sean had used too much gasoline, and could not put the fire out. When I asked Sean where how he came up with the idea, he said, “ a book I read called, My Side of The Mountain”.

When Sean was ten, He and his family moved to Philadelphia, PA. Sean was old enough to see the change in lifestyles, and describes Philly as, “a much faster paced life, we were always doing something, whether it was paintball or just taking a drive.” Sean had friends in Philly that he would hang out with on a daily basis. Sean kept his circle of friends close, and describes why by saying, “ mostly to protect myself, so that when I had to move again it wouldn’t be so hard to leave.”

Throughout his life, Sean was a sports fan, and loved competition. These characteristics go hand-in-hand with his independence, to make a person with a strong will and great determination. Football has been Sean’s sport of choice. Still, Sean loves wrestling, motocross, paintball, as well as snowboarding.

Football has taught Sean a lot of life lessons as well as athletics. He learned lessons in things such as teamwork, leadership, respect, dealing with loss, and even determination. Football also allowed Sean to make good friends, which was helpful because it is hard to make friends when you move a lot. Football and other sports have been a foundation for Sean throughout his life of ever changing scenery. Sean’s family has always supported him in his athletics. Sean said, “Football really brought us closer together, my family loved to watch me play.”

Football, although being a static characteristic of Sean’s, found a way to bring vast changes to Sean’s life. When Sean was a junior in high school, Football was a way of life. Little did he know, he would miss much of the season. While playing in a game against Plymouth Whitmarsh High School, Sean was in the linebacker position for Wissahickson High School. During one play, Sean was being blocked by a player from the opposing team, when he was hit in the back by another opponent’s helmet. Sean went to the ground in excruciating pain. He knew then something was wrong..

After being taken to the hospital, Sean discovered he had fractured his L3 and L5 vertebra. These are the lower-middle of the spine. Sean was forced to wear a removable cast. The purpose of the cast was to limit his turning and bending. With this serious injury, Sean could not do many of the things that played large roles in his life such as football, wrestling, and paintball: since he could not move his back in order for it to heal. Sean was forced to pick up new hobbies such as, “photography, painting, and hanging with friends” as sean describes it.
Along with Sean’s back injury, football has been responsible for many other injuries. Such as the handful of concussions. Sean had suffered fourteen concussions by the time that he finished playing football at age 18. Along with all of the concussions, Sean also suffered from many broken bones.

Along with football, Sean loves to wrestle. He wrestled in high school, as well as his little brother. Sean describes his brother’s wrestling by saying, “He loved it. He was better than I was, and it brought us closer. He loved to teach me.” Wrestling was a way for Sean and his brother to connect as they grew up. Sean’s brother was almost two years younger than Sean, and looked up to him. Wrestling was a way for them to connect with each other.

Another hobby of Sean’s is working on cars. Cars were the source of connection between Sean and his father. They would use the time spent under the hood to catch up and talk about things as Sean and his father did something they were both passionate about.

Sean’s family has some concrete traditions that remain a static characteristic of the Sandgrens. One such tradition in the Sandgren house comes on christmas. Every year, Sean’s family makes resalmon, which is rice pudding with almonds and cherry sauce. The Sandgrens put one whole almond in the mix, and whoever gets the whole nut gets the box of chocolate turtles. Sean says, “ Its something we only do on christmas.” Sean’s family uses these traditions to keep the whole family connected. They have always believed in having a tightly-knit family structure, and this still holds true in Sean’s life today. Family has always held a special place in Sean’s heart because they have always been there, in every new surrounding.