It is with the deepest grief and a sincere sense of loss that the family of Chicken Sando Fucillo, of San Luis Obispo, shares her passing on the morning of Saturday, February 1, 2020. Chicken, or as her friends and family called her, Sando, is devotedly loved and mourned by her adopted family, especially her human brother Jacob, who has cried at least three times leading up to and after her passing. Sando is survived by her step-sisters from a second marriage, Chicken Princess and Chicken Perfect, and her younger siblings from a third blended family, Chicken Mohawk and Chicken Pipsqueak.
As an avid athlete throughout her life, Sando was well-known in the poultry world of track and field. She’d medaled several times, outrunning many competitive wild canines. She also placed several times in trash can jumping, and meal worm sprints. Leading up to the holidays, she suffered from a sprained ankle due to an unobserved coop training accident. In typical Sando-style, she rebounded, only to pass in her sleep of natural causes. She was discovered in her favorite nesting box by her loving brother Nate, who immediately recognized she had gone to the chicken championship track in the sky.
A native of Santa Cruz, Sando was raised in the mountains by a stout single mother. She grew up tough as nails, but with a soft spot for little human boys. She was the life of the party, greeting any stranger as an old friend and possible source of meal worms. Beyond her career as a world-class track and field athlete, Sando enjoyed ruling the roost, jumping from tall places, and testing kitchen scraps to make sure they were safe for others. As her brother Jacob reflected, “She was my favorite chicken. And she was a survivor.”
Sando served on the boards of several organizations including Indian Knob’s Early Risers and the SLO Chapter of Hens Against Domestic Violence, having survived several traumatic months with an abusive male roommate.
A celebration of Chicken Sando’s life was held at 7 am on Saturday the first in the lower meadow, prior to the SLO Surf n’ Turf All Stars Soccer Tournament. The good Reverend James presided over the celebration of her life, including a jubilant shower of meal worms. Her grave is marked by a beautiful local rock sculpture created by two artisan brothers.
Chicken Sando Fucillo
? – February 1, 2020