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Lehigh County
church partners
*Churches with an asterisk next to their name are trauma responsive churches.
Meet the county staff
Sarah first gained a heart for vulnerable children while growing up on the mission field in France and hearing the stories of the many refugees and immigrants who attended their church. After earning a bachelors in Biblical Counseling and a Masters in Human Services, this burden grew as she worked with at-risk families doing in-
home counseling and later advocacy work for victims of sexual assault. Serving as client services director of a pregnancy resource center fueled compassion for desperate young mothers, some of whom had aged out of the foster care system after being moved through dozens of homes. Their stories led she and her husband Michael to become foster parents in the states of NC and FL where Michael was stationed with the Marine Corps. Of the seven children who came through their home, three are now adopted, and they are in the process of getting licensed to foster here in PA. In her spare time, Sarah enjoys mountain biking, painting, reading, and hiking with the family labradoodle, Penelope.
Sarah and Michael have a passion to see the church in America and here in the Lehigh Valley rise up and practice the pure religion to which we are called, described in James 1:27. Having experienced the deep brokenness of the foster care system, they long to see hurting children, struggling families, and exhausted caseworkers impacted by the Hope of the Gospel.
After receiving a degree in social work, Tara worked as a foster care caseworker and saw first hand the joys and heartaches of the child welfare system. After getting married and having two children of her own, Tara and her became foster parents while she was also working as Director of Christian Ed and Youth at
her church. They fostered off and on for about 10 years total. They also adopted two of their foster children. In 2024, Tara started doing per diem work as a case aide for the Salvation Army Children's Services. They introduced her to Keystone Family Alliance and she attended a Care Community orientation. She then became an advocate for her church and recruited others in her church to do their something. This ministry is aligned with her heart's passion to connect the church and the child welfare system.