MT. PLEASANT—Sandra Bigler, the grand marshal of Hub City Days, has served Mt. Pleasant and its residents throughout her adult life.
She is a descendant of Seely pioneers, who were among the first Mt. Pleasant settlers in 1859. She was born in the Madsen Hospital on Main Street on March 22, 1945 to Hyrum Carlton Seeley and Elverda Elizabeth Smith. She has lived in Mt. Pleasant her entire life except for a year and a half in Salt Lake City.
Sandra graduated from North Sanpete High School in 1963. She married John A. Bigler from Indianola on June 10, 1963. They were married for more than 50 years.
Sandra and John were self-employed throughout their married life. They ran a tire business for many years and in 1976 built Big Pine Sports in Fairview, Utah.
They also had an agriculture business in Indianola raising alfalfa and livestock on a farm that has been in the Bigler name for over 107 years. The Bigler farm has been identified as a Utah Centennial Farm.
For more than 55 years, Sandra’s husband, John; two grandsons, Kolton and Kaden; and a son-in-law, Mark, worked the farm. It is still in operation and carries on the family’s agricultural heritage.
Sandra also enjoyed preparing personal income tax returns for H&R Block for 11 years. She developed a love for and life-time relationship with many of her clients.
She volunteered for more than 16 years beautifying Mt. Pleasant City by planting flowers along Main Street and on other public property. She also served on the Rodeo Committee.
In 1995, she was elected to the Mt. Pleasant City Council and served until May 2009, when she was appointed mayor to fill the remaining six months of Chesley Christensen’s term following his death.
In November of 2009 she was elected to a four-year term as mayor, which she completed in 2013.
“It has been a pleasure to work and live for such a great city for 27 years and to serve the great citizens of Mt. Pleasant City,” she said. “It is a city that is rich in history, and I am proud of my ancestors, who have also served in elected positions in Mt. Pleasant City.”
In 2004, Sandra became the sexton of the Mt. Pleasant City Cemetery. She had no prior notice of the appointment. Former Councilman Monte Bona simply made a motion in a city council meeting to appoint her to the post. The motion was approved unanimously.
She is still serving, and says she loves the position, and the people she has met and helped. She has overseen more than 700 burials and knows more about the cemetery than anyone else.
Sandra and John are the parents of two daughters, JoAnn (Ted) Mollinet of Fairview, Utah, and Tammy (Mark) Jorgensen of Mt. Pleasant, Utah.
They have six grandchildren, Natalie (Garrett) Crosby, Jammie (Rusty) Hansen, Michelle (Devin) Mackey, Kolton (Alexa) Jorgensen, Kaden (Meagan) Jorgensen and Keisha (Connor) Christensen, as well as 20 great grandchildren.
