Amy Elizabeth Sanchez-Bennett, passed away peacefully to be with Jesus, on September 23, 2026, at 4:46 p.m. at the St. Elizabeth Hospital in O’Fallon, Illinois, surrounded with lots of love by her daughter Valencia, her mother Lynda, and sister Tina.
Amy was born on October 10, 1975, in Panama City, Republic of Panama to Enrique and Lynda Sanchez. Later they moved to Lock Haven, Pennsylvania where her dad worked for Piper Aircraft. Then they moved to Florida and eventually back to Panama.
In 1984, at the age of 9, Amy began attending school in Benton, Illinois, where she graduated from Benton High School in 1993. In high school, Amy was a spirited Rangler Girl then cheerleader and voted homecoming maid of honor her senior year. She was also a contestant in the Miss Teen Rend Lake Pageant where she won trophies for best dress, most photogenic and first runner up!
After high school she attended John A. logan college and later moved to Dallas, Texas where she was a secretary at Ross Perot Systems and was a contestant and first runner up in the Miss Dallas pageant which took her on to the Miss Texas USA pageant in Brownsville, Texas in 1998 along with Eva Longoria who also competed. While in Dallas, Amy met the man she married and moved to England. While in England, she enrolled in the London Academy of Performing Arts and performed on stage in several productions.
Amy had many talents, some of which were singing, dancing, acting, playing piano by ear and writing songs that she sang on a CD that she created and produced. She also designed and sewed beautiful baby and lady’s clothes for her business, “The Moth and The Butterfly. She also made beautiful greeting cards and was a talented floral arranger and she always had a lovely fresh bouquet of flowers on a table in her tidy home. She also enjoyed traveling to many exotic places across the world.
Amy is survived by her beautiful daughter Valencia Sanchez Esposti and friend Billy, her father Enrique Sanchez and wife Lupe, her mother Lynda Bennett Sanchez, sister Dr. Christina Dothager and husband Shane, her brother Aron Sanchez and wife Deidra, Aunt Marlene Webb, Uncle Jim Bennett, Uncle Rod Bennett and wife Lisa, Aunt Cathy Bennett, Aunt Yariela Anciaux, Uncle Joaquin Sanchez and wife Mariela, and many nieces and nephews and cousins.
Though her eyes are closed, Amy’s sight will live on by being a donor to Mid America Transplant Services.
Amy was of the Baptist faith.
Graveside services will be held at 2:30 p.m. Sunday, September 27, 2026, at the Liberty-Ridlin Cemetery of Macedonia, with Rev. Mark Minor Officiating. Friends are asked to go directly to the cemetery. The Leffler Funeral Home of Benton is in charge of the services.
The family prefers donations be made to the American Cancer Society and will be accepted at the services.
To give online condolences to the family, or to share memories of Amy, go to www.lpfuneralhome.com.
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