See you later, Lexie

 Lexington Sapphire Shores Sinkel West (Lexie) of Lunenburg, Massachusetts died March 13, 2023, with her best friend and mother, Catherine, by her side. Lexie was born in Tennessee and was a survivor, spending difficult years as a breeder dog in a puppy mill before being rescued by Freetown Animal Sanctuary in Lebanon, Tennessee. She was adopted by Catherine on September 5, 2011. 

Catherine felt an instant connection, but it was not love at first sight for Lexie. Lexie made her uncertainty clear by immediately running away and then biting her new mom, after being tackled and captured in a scene reminiscent of any classic cartoon. (Catherine will treasure the scar on her right arm the rest of her days!). After months of forced bonding, the pair swiftly became inseparable, and they moved to Massachusetts in 2012 where Lexie could be raised near family. 

Over the next decade, Lexie transformed from a timid animal, unsure of her surroundings and wary of people, to a confident lifeforce who followed Catherine everywhere and was often the best-behaved child in attendance at any given event. She went to church, the movies, ballet and orchestra performances, flew on an airplane, sunbathed at the beach, boated, rode in a stroller for multiple 5ks, and went to work with Catherine for years. She was always kind…yet she remained wary of people, which she demonstrated by a trademark RBF, perpetually giving off the vibe that she marched to the beat of Shania Twain’s, “That Don’t Impress Me Much.” 

Perhaps most notably, Lexie became a licensed therapy dog, and she spent over a year visiting Keystone Nursing Home in Leominster almost every week. She also volunteered with disabled adults in Boston, read to children at Florence Roche in Groton, and was the reading dog for years in Lunenburg and Leominster. She truly lifted the spirits of people with whom she met, and it was a privilege for Catherine to witness their joy. 

Lexie’s grandmother, Iris, was instrumental in her care…even rushing her to the emergency vet in the middle of the night for lifesaving treatment in 2018. They have lived together for Lexie’s final year, and Iris has cared for her like no one else would, right until the very end. In addition to Catherine and Iris, Lexie is survived by her best friend and cousin, Cupcake, her brother and sister, Xander and Lissy, her cousins: Louisa, Emma, Nina, Nate, Teddy, Boots, Jasper, and Luna, and her dad, Seth. 

It gives us great comfort to know that Lexie is with her beloved Pa and their poodle, Christmas Joy, with whom Lexie spent every day for years. Pa loved making lunch for “the girls,” and we know they are on a couch somewhere watching tennis and eating his fine cuisine. 

We miss you, Lexie. 

“You’re more beautiful than Cinderella…your face is like Sunshine.” – Bridesmaids