HEAR HER ALBUM: The cover of Sandy Johnson's new album Future & Hope, available on Apple Music and Spotify. (Submitted Photo)

THOMASVILLE — Hospice nurse Sandy Johnson has spent her career treating patients like family, never expecting anything in return. Singing at church in her spare time and sometimes sharing her voice with her patients, Johnson was shocked when a patient’s family offered her the opportunity to come and record two original songs in Nashville.

Johnson explained she was talking with the patient’s husband, who worked for a large church in California, when she expressed her faith and told them about her participation in the church choir. Not thinking much of the conversation, Johnson continued to care for the patient, who held a special place in her heart.

“I just loved her and adored her,” Johnson said.

Sadly, Johnson’s patient passed away, but her legacy left Johnson stunned.

“After she passed, her daughter (Jenny) reached out to me,” Johnson said. “She said her mother, father, and she wanted to do something special for me because of the good care I had given.”

Jenny told Johnson they wanted to send her to Nashville to record.

Initially hesitant, Johnson declined the offer, explaining she didn’t have the money.

“I was just nervous,” Johnson admitted.

In a heartwarming moment, Jenny told Johnson that everything would be free, and the recording would take place at a studio she owned in Nashville, complete with producers, songwriters, and engineers.

Jenny assured that Johnson would be flown in and put up in a hotel.

Still a bit unsure, Johnson said she would think about it, but then remembered Jenny had never heard her sing.

Jenny told Johnson she knew she sang in church and at local weddings, so regardless of whether the songs ever took off, she wanted her to have the experience. Jenny then asked Johnson to send a couple of clips of her singing so the studio could be prepared.

Johnson agreed and accepted Jenny’s offer to record in Nashville.

Before her trip, Johnson sent Jenny some scriptures, along with sayings that she liked, as Jenny worked with songwriters to craft a song that Johnson could sing. Additionally, Johnson sent Jenny two songs she wanted to sing at the recording studio.

From there, the experience of a lifetime began.

Johnson and her sister were flown to Nashville, where, upon arrival, they were whisked away to a photoshoot.

“I had a hairstylist and a makeup artist, and they had given me four different outfits,” Johnson said. “I went on the train tracks for the photoshoot, and it was a little overwhelming.”

After a full first day, Johnson rested up and prepared to record two songs the following afternoon.

Her first recording was the two songs she had previously chosen, “My Jesus” and “How Great Thou Art.”

“How Great Thou Art” was not only special for Johnson but also symbolic for Jenny. After the song, Jenny’s Mother-in-Law can be heard praying over her and her mother during her final hours.

“We got finished about 8:00, so I was there about five or six hours,” Johnson said.

She noted the team was impressed, as sometimes recordings can take weeks, even for professionals.

“Of course, there were probably some faults, but I wanted to be respectful of their time,” Johnson said.

After returning to her room, Johnson began learning the two songs the studio had written for her.

“I started practicing, but I’ve never had voice lessons, so I didn’t know how to train my voice, but I practiced them,” Johnson said.

The following afternoon, Johnson returned to the studio and sang two more songs before she was met with more exciting news.

Jenny informed Johnson she would be sending the four songs to Spotify and Apple Music, where Johnson could now collect royalties.

Johnson was shocked.

“It may not do anything, but if I can just touch one person, that’s enough for me,” she said.

As Johnson reflects on the experience, she is grateful for Jenny, but especially the patient who changed her life.

Johnson admitted hospice can be difficult, as death is constant, and sometimes it can be easy to get down and out and want to be done, but then the patients make it all worthwhile.

“That little bit of light made it all worthwhile, because no one has ever done anything like that for me before,” she said. “It’s truly overwhelming.”

Johnson will forever miss her patient and the moments they shared during her time in hospice, spent talking about religion and family, but she will now smile every time a memory is shared.