By LEONARD GRAY

Managing Editor

ST. ROSE — Sandra Washington endured a parent’s worst nightmare – the sudden loss of all four of her children in an auto accident three years ago.

Now, she is hoping to help similarly-stricken parents learn to cope.

On Feb. 2, 2003, Rachel Washington, 20, and her three younger siblings – Samantha, 16; Allen Jr., 12; and Alandra, 10, were headed home from a family gathering in Kenner, where her grandfather’s birthday and her own, Feb. 3, were celebrated.

At 7 p.m., the 1979 Oldsmobile Cutlass Rachel was driving was headed westbound on Airline Highway when it swerved to the right and plunged into the canal. All four drowned. Three of the bodies were recovered that night. It took more than 12 hours to locate Alandra’s body.

No one then or now has determined the cause of the accident. Their father, Allen Washington Sr. (an auto mechanic who maintained the vehicle) personally examined it, but was unable to find any mechanical cause.

Ever since, public officials have debated barriers along Airline Highway, and a white cross, joined by a second marked with the children’s names and frequently several balloons mark the spot where the accident occurred.

&#8220We don’t know who put the white cross out there,” Sandra said. However, even through Katrina, the cross has been maintained.

Friends remember. Many of her children’s friends are in high school and college now. Several keep in touch with the couple.

At Mt. Olive Mausoleum in Gentilly, where they are interred, the couple makes frequent visits.

Sandra tries not to think much on the accident itself. Instead, she remembers the many good times. &#8220Those children left us with so many wonderful memories,” she said. &#8220We may cry, but we remember the good times.”

The couple moved from their Destrehan apartment to a house in St. Rose a little more than a year ago. Certain rooms in the house have been &#8220dedicated” to each child, according to their personality. Each is marked with a photo montage and a small plaque. Rachel’s is the living room; Samantha’s is the kitchen; Allen Jr.’s is the study; and a cozy bedroom is Alandra’s.

Every wall is adorned with images of the children. A display cabinet holds a number of homemade items the children made as gifts. All are lovingly preserved.

&#8220All I ever wanted was a home for the kids,” she said.

Her husband is still Sunday School supervisor at their church, Cypress Grove Baptist Church in Kenner. Both still teach Sunday School. She is now attending Delgado, as her eldest daughter had been at the time of her death.

Through it all, she can smile. She says she knows her children are safe now from the perils and temptations of the world, lending her their strength. That isn’t to say she doesn’t have her dark times.

&#8220That was the hardest thing – walking into an empty house,” Sandra said, as she recalled the sounds and commotion four children can generate.

When Sandra herself was 11 years old, her mother died. At the time, she could not imagine a worse pain, and that she would never again experience such love as her mother gave her.

Her husband, Allen, has been &#8220a pillar of strength” through their daily ordeal. She credits God for lending His strength, and feels her children have empowered her to continue.

&#8220Those kids taught me divine love. It’s amazing how much impact they had on my life.”

Now, she is planning a support group for parents who have lost children, hoping through her God-given strength to guide others toward a positive reflection of what they lost, to enable them to go on, and to help still others.

&#8220It’s part of a bigger plan, being available to what God wants me to do,” Sandra said.

On the night of the accident, she recalled, her husband told her, &#8220We’re going to trust God and always be honest with our feelings.” It is a vow they have kept to one another.

In the meantime, Sandra Washington manages to feel events could have been worse.

Some of her children may have died, leaving the others to suffer and grieve. They could have been on life support, leaving the parents with the awful decision whether to terminate. They could have been badly crippled, suffering for the rest of their days.

&#8220I’ve gained a greater appreciation of seeing things in a different way,” she said.

Sandra advises every parent to stay in constant contact with their children, knowing what they do and think every day.

&#8220Cherish every moment, and don’t sweat the small stuff,” she added. &#8220Live, love and laugh.”