At a very young age, Sarah’s life became marked by chronic pain and health issues. Her days were riddled with the loss of capacities and abilities. Everyday tasks were constant challenges, with the added weight of endless doctors’ bills and deep disappointment from missing out on the many things her peers took for granted. Still, Sarah learned to navigate her health challenges with heroic courage, eventually becoming a practitioner who specializes in working with unhealthy patterns of behavior caused by trauma and stress – behaviors that hold people back from living a full life. Not only has she helped numerous clients move through their challenges to reclaim life with joy and passion, but Sarah has also become a model of what it looks like to fulfill one’s purpose, even amid long suffering.

Thus, it isn’t surprising that the themes of suffering, hope, and love caught her eye when she visited Belóved Gallery.

“I was really touched to hear little Akaine ask her mom, ‘Why was I chosen?’” Sarah shared about the exhibition film, Akiane: A Portrait of the Artist, alluding to an especially painful moment nine-year-old Akiane is told her portrait of Jesus is blasphemous and that it should be burned. This was only a few months before the painting was stolen and hidden away for almost two decades. “Akiane’s been given a very special gift that comes with a purpose, and in expressing her gift to the world, she’s experienced both high praise and the shadowy dark underbelly of human nature. She has to embrace both sides of the reality she’s been given, which comes with beautiful experiences and a lot of heartache, pain, and confusion, but she’s done it gracefully. I respect and admire that about her.”