Sarah has worked all over the world. She was trained as an actress in Dublin, she has worked as a teacher in Michigan, lettuce truck driver in LA, and even micro-enterprise developer in Rwanda. Sarah has been placed in a role where she cares for kids and develops and trains volunteers to mentor at-risk youth. Mentors develop relationships with students that foster hope, dreams and love. The Kids Hope program at Eagle Rock Elementary has flourished, and there are now programs running a few other schools in Los Angeles. Sarah's determination and commitment to serve the underprivileged in Los Angeles is impacting communities beyond her own.

We were so inspired with the time spent with Sarah, listening to her story and how her journey has led her on a path in which lives are continually changed and given hope. She is in incredible woman that is living A Life Worth Imitating as she encourages volunteers and students each day. Sarah uses her life to instill hope, confidence and affirmation in others. Now, that's A Life Worth Imitating. #TeamBarnabas

Tell us about the Kids Hope program at Christian Assembly.
Kids Hope is a mentoring program for elementary aged children, and is fueled by a passion to help America's most vulnerable children in the public schools, experience the "hope and a future" promised in Jeremiah 29:11. Local high schools in my neighborhood have a 50% attrition rate. This means that 50% of the kids in my neighborhood will statistically not graduate from high school. So, our goal at Kids Hope - Christian Assembly is simple: to intervene in the lives of kids at Eagle Rock Elementary School and become agents of

transformation, affirmation, and hope!  My job, as the Kids Hope director, is to recruit and train volunteer mentors from and then pair them with one child that has been identified by the school. Mentors commit to meeting with their student one hour, once a week, for the whole school year. During the first school year (2007-2008), we served 15 children. We are now in the middle of our 5th year and we are serving almost 70 students every week! Our program continues to grow because of the amazing men and women of Christian Assembly Church who commit to making a difference in the life of a child.

What was life like for you growing up?
Life was pretty confusing for me as a kid. My grandparents were all first generation American immigrants from the Netherlands and Denmark. They worked hard to survive and make a living in this "foreign" land. So my parents had a pretty tough go of it when they were growing up. I came from a very dysfunctional and broken family. My grandmother committed suicide, my dad left when I was 15. I didn't have adults that I could really count on to be there for me. Ironically, I could have used a Kids Hope mentor to add some stability and love to my life. One of the great things about having this job is that I get to make sure kids like me don't have the same experience I did growing up-feeling scared and alone, wondering if their life matters.

I left my job as an elementary art teacher to go work in Rwanda. I worked in the capital, Kigali, as well as a town in the southwest called Cyangugu. That was in 2003 and many Rwandans were just returning to their country after fleeing from the genocide in 1994. I worked with "Amahoro ava Hajuru" (which means "Peace on High" in Kinyarwanda). Women of opposing tribes (the Hutus and the Tutsi's) were working side by side in my organization, leading the way to reconciliation and peace in their country. It was inspiring and humbling work. I taught the ladies basic tie-dye and batik techniques so that they could dye fabric and sell it. You can see their products here: http://www.amaniafrica.org/about.php

After that, I moved to California to pursue a career in the entertainment industry. I know that sounds totally random, but I figured it was the only way I could make a lot of money that I could give away to the people who had captured my heart in Haiti, Rwanda and Kenya. I had trained as an actress at the Gaiety School of Theater in Dublin, Ireland in college, and got an agent fairly quickly here in LA. I was getting some work…but not feeling at peace about it. It didn't seem authentically what I was made for (and I really believe that if we're doing the work we were made for, we feel fully alive, I was feeling more and more dead). So after about 18 months, I decided to stop pursuing acting.

Instead, I drove a lettuce truck for four years and worked at local farmers' markets selling lettuce. I eventually got promoted to manager at the Burbank Farmers' market and that job allowed me the time and space to volunteer 20 hours a week at Christian Assembly in Eagle Rock, which eventually paved the way for a Kids Hope partnership with Eagle Rock Elementary.

And here's the funny thing, there are some days when I am walking through the playground and kids run up to me that I feel like a celebrity. And my heart smiles, because God knew better than I did, exactly the sort of "celebrity" I could handle without my ego getting inflated! God knew how much life and joy this job would bring-not only me-but so many people involved with this ministry. I so often feel like Kids Hope is the perfect job for me-it fits my values, my gifts and my strengths so well-but I would never have dreamed that I would be doing it when I graduated from college.

What are your favorite parts of the work you do with Kids Hope?
Wow, there are so many great things about my job! First, I feel like I have a front seat to watching transformation in people's lives in my community (both mentors AND students). How great is that? I love watching kids have "breakthrough moments," like a little shy kindergartener in my program who spoke for the first time to an adult at school. I love seeing kids feel so happy and loved when they are with their mentors. I think the Kids Hope room might be the happiest place in Eagle Rock! I even love the "naughty" kids because they are so creative and entertaining. But my favorite moments happen on the side: when I'm walking to the Kids Hope room and a child comes up behind me to hug me, or I feel a little tug on my sleeve and a child not yet in the program asks, "Ms. Sarah, can I have a hope too?" Those moments remind me that relationships transform lives in ways that nothing else can-no TV program, no expensive education or afterschool activity, no video game or toy will touch the heart of a child in the way a relationship with a caring adult can!

What does 'A Life Worth Imitating' mean to you?
"A Life Worth Imitating" to me, is a life that is bigger than ourselves.

What do you think about Barnabas Clothing?
I think Barnabas Clothing gets this idea of living a life that is bigger than "just us." It's nice to buy clothes, but it's even better to know that while you're getting an awesome new shirt, someone else is being helped too. Life is not just about us getting more "stuff," but about us working together to make the world a better place. Barnabas Clothing really understands that idea and puts it into practice!

"Meet A Barnabas" features people who inspire others by living a life of integrity. What does that mean to you?
Living a life of integrity means living in line with your values and beliefs. So for me, that basically means "Love God, love your neighbor." Of course I mess that up every single day, but we don't give up, we press on. Integrity is a huge value for Kids Hope because it means sticking with your commitments. If you say you're going to be there, you show up for your kid. If you don't, you can do more harm than good. Being that sort of person doesn't "just happen" because there are a million distractions every day. So it's important to follow through on little things you commit to every day, those little decisions build a life of integrity. Faithfulness is the key to Kids Hope, and to many other things in life.

Integrity also means being honest, being the same with people as you are when no one is looking at you. Integrity is not perfection, but a willingness to stay engaged, to persevere, to say "I'm sorry, I messed up" and mean it. I think being a person of integrity takes discipline and lot of perseverance. That doesn't make it fun every day, but it builds a life that satisfies in ways that few other things can!

http://kidshopeusa.org/
Facebook: http://www.facebook.com/pages/Kids-Hope-Eagle-Rock/323584391025509
Website: www.caeaglerock.com/kidshope

Want to get involved with Kids Hope? Have questions?
email: kidshope@caeaglerock.com