Hi, I’m Sara! I’m an experienced senior leader having spent nearly two decades in the Housing and Homelessness sector in Calgary.  Working both on the front lines and in senior leadership, I bring the depth and breadth of those perspectives to every project I support. I’m passionate about building strong, effective programs through creative, tailored solutions that empower and engage staff at every level. I’m committed to leveraging my experience, knowledge, and problem solving skills to strengthen organizations across the non-profit sector.

My work is grounded in trauma-informed care, best practice, strong research skills, and a knack for identifying systems and structures that are outdated. I bring a system-thinking approach to the collaborative work that I do and document that work in succinct reports. My experience and skills have helped me work in a breadth of roles including accreditation, collective impact working group, frontline work, and senior leadership. 

I have a Bachelor of Arts in Sociology with a concentration in Crime, Deviance, and Social Control from the University of Calgary.  My favorite undergraduate courses were Logic (reading and writing papers were a far more pleasant experience after this course!), Research Methodologies, and any of the criminology courses. This amazing degree gave me the opportunity to go on a ride-along with both Calgary Police Service and Calgary Bylaw Services, attend a criminal court case, tour all the incarceration facilities in and around Calgary, including the Remand Centre, and so much more! I have applied a lot of this learning throughout my career and it’s inspired me to continue learning about these institutions.

Additionally, I have a Master of Arts in Leadership from Royal Roads University. I took the thesis based route in order to pursue my dream of exploring trauma informed leadership. I accomplished that dream and worked with a very gracious domestic violence organization in order to explore the leadership style that best supported staff experiencing vicarious trauma.  If you are so inclined, you can review my thesis here :)

In my personal time, I volunteer at my local church, spend time with family, and travel when I can.