Sarah Neal Secrest
Jackson Preparatory School | St. James Episcopal Church
A Situation Where I Lived Out My Faith
During our junior year, we have the opportunity to create a M.A.D. (Make a Difference) Project to make a difference in our community, state, nation, or world. I chose to make a difference in my community. I created a program at the Boys & Girls Clubs of Central Mississippi called Handprints, which allows me to speak to children, ranging 8-16 years old, about making their “handprints” on the world. Every week, with a small group, the children discuss several verses and how God has worked in people’s lives. By showing these kids and teenagers how God has worked in my life, I have been able to live out my faith and share my story. I am so grateful for everything God has blessed me with and Handprints has given me the opportunity to give back to my community by teaching children my age and younger that we can all make our handprint on the world if we trust God and live by faith.
Activities and Service to Others
At school, I am the Student Body President, Spanish Club President, co-captain of the Pacer drill team, member of the National Honor Society, Community Service Club, Youth Legislature, and the Patriot League. In the community, I run a program at the Boys & Girls Clubs of Central MS called Handprints. I volunteer at Casey Elementary through the Big Brother Big Sister program, at Neighborhood Christian Center, and for MS Children’s Museum Youth Ambassadors. I also volunteer in Guiamaca, Honduras, at Hospital Bautista. At church, I am involved in Episcopal Youth Council and Young Life.
Future Plans
I believe that the Lord is calling me to pursue a career in medicine—and furthermore, missionary medicine. Every spring break my father and I travel to Guiamaca, Honduras, where I get to assist him in surgery cases for an entire week. Through these trips, the Lord has revealed to me that medicine is my calling in life and that I can make a difference in people’s lives through a medical career.