Austin
It all started in Bolingbrook, IL
As one of six kids from a union household, Sarah knows the value of investing in your community and working for everyone to have a better quality life. When the most vulnerable do better, we all do better.
Sarah graduated from Romeoville High School in 2007. While there, she participated in a mix of student groups. Before and after school, she could be found participating in the Marine Corps JROTC, Math Team, Band, Foreign Language, and athletic groups.
Sarah moved to Champaign in the fall of 2007 to attend University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign. Thanks to the availability of student loans, as well as working on-campus, Sarah was able to receive her Bachelor’s in Teaching German as a Foreign Language in 2011.
As full-time teaching positions in German proved scarce, Sarah stayed on campus and found work with Health Alliance Medical Plans during the rollout of the Affordable Care Act. Sarah used this time to pay back student loans, learn more about our healthcare system, and continue teaching martial arts in the UIUC community.
Sarah’s family settled in Crystal Lake as their new home, drawn to it for it’s charm, natural areas, and it’s dedication to education.
Shortly after settling down, Sarah started a martial arts school as a way to give back to the community, as well as keep up her training. Proceeds from the business went largely to the local library or elementary school as donations, or back into the school as equipment to be shared by all students. Today, the school operates as a fee-free club, and is no longer a business. Although Sarah is unable to make regular donations from the school, she enjoys being able to provide a safe, healthy activity to her existing students, without burdening the families with tuition costs.
Now that her children are enrolled in school, Sarah has begun shifting her professional focus back into the traditional classroom. She volunteers with her childrens’ PTO, works at their school as a playground supervisor, and substitute teaches at her childrens’ former preschool. Sarah loves that she gets to spend so much time in the community making connections. While Sarah intends to return to the classroom full-time, her roles in the preschool and elementary school are helping to find what level she fits in best. In the meantime, Sarah gets to make a difference every day in the very foundation of our society, by ensuring our school children have a safe environment with adults they can depend on.
UIUC
Once Sarah’s partner completed his degree, they relocated for a time to Austin, Texas. Sarah continued working remotely with Health Alliance Medical Plans until they welcomed their first child. For Sarah, family life brought a new opportunity, and she found flexible work teaching English as a second language online. During their time in Austin, Sarah continued training and teaching martial arts as a volunteer instructor.
Once COVID hit, and Sarah welcomed her second child, they began to feel the distance from family stronger than ever. In the summer of 2020, they began looking for their new home in Illinois.
