Oliver Sands Woody
It is with great sadness that our family announces the passing of our dad, brother, grandpa and loved one, Oliver Sands Woody, Jr., on May 30, 2025.
Sands was born in Roanoke, Virginia on March 22, 1945, while his father was overseas serving in WWII. Though he lived in Rocky Mount, Virginia and Winston-Salem, North Carolina in his younger years, the family moved back to Roanoke in 1958. Sands attended Cave Spring High School, where he served as president of the student government during his senior year and participated in football, basketball and track. He was also an Eagle Scout.
He received a scholarship to play football at Virginia Tech and played under coach Jerry Claiborne from 1963-1966. During his senior year, at a time when teams truly had to excel to be invited to the few existing bowls, the team was selected to go to the Liberty Bowl to play Miami. Many of the players that he played with while at Tech are known as the Claiborne Boys and have continued to get together each year in Myrtle Beach, and Sands always enjoyed seeing his old teammates.
While at Virginia Tech, Sands was also highly active in his fraternity, the Dekes. Many of his best friends throughout his life were his fraternity brothers, and they socialized often, travleing together and attending Virginia Tech football games in both Blacksburg and elsewhere.
After graduation in 1967, Sands worked in the flooring industry, getting his start at his father’s company, Woody Distributors, Inc., in Roanoke, VA. From the beginning he moved on to other fields within the industry, successfully creating the flooring buying group Magic Carpet Stores, which evolved into America’s Carpet Gallery, and he eventually created Flooring America. These endeavors took him to live in Massachusetts and Missouri. Sands was well known and respected within the flooring industry with a passion and charisma that drew people towards him. In 1985, he was elected president of the National Association of Floor Covering Distributors.
After retirement from the flooring industry, he moved back to Roanoke and briefly ventured into the restaurant business, opening a restaurant on the Roanoke Market called Trio.
Sands was a true dog lover, in particular chocolate labs, and owned many throughout his life.
Sands was preceded in death by his father, Oliver Sands Woody, Sr.; his mother, Reese Whitlow Woody; and his sister, Cynthia Woody Morgan.
He is survived by his sons and daughters-in-law, Clay Sands Woody (Nikki) and Scott Lawson Woody (Ruth); grandchildren, Clay, Jr., Jared (Beatrice), Jack, Jordan (Kaliegh), Amanda (Kieran), Jayden, Jonathon (Elisha) and Joshua; great-grandchild, Asher; sister and brother-in-law, Betty Woody Snavely (George); and many other family members and special friends.
The family would like to give a very special thanks to Sands’ “lady” and our newest family member, Lynn Wright, for the care shown during this time.
A memorial service will be held at 2 p.m. on Saturday, July 12, 2025, at Faith Fellowship Church, 100 Wirtz Road, Wirtz, VA.
The Woody family is in the care of Mullins Funeral Home & Crematory in Radford, Virginia. www.mullinsfuneralhome.com
