Like Sullivan Ballou, your story is about someone who has followed her heart. Your educational success would have allowed you to occupy top positions in Mexican industry, law firms, or government. Instead, you chose to start working for a group home and advocacy organization for victims of human trafficking in Mexico City, El Pozo de Vida (The Well of Life). You started El Pozo’s legal department and represented victims of human trafficking as they sought justice in court. During the day you fought with prosecutors and judges to obtain justice for her clients, yet you spent the afternoons and evenings training volunteers and even sleeping at El Pozo’s group home.
When family matters required you to leave El Pozo and return to your family’s home in Ciudad Juárez. Juvenile Justice Advocates International was just starting a project in Chihuahua and Ciudad Juárez. It was intended to be a model site for a program for juvenile justice reform in Mexico. Despite limited funding, you committed to coordinating the project in Chihuahua.
Thanks to your leadership, JJA now has an effective team of three people in Chihuahua state. They are actively monitoring detention conditions, organizing parents of children in detention, and providing direct assistance to the most vulnerable children in detention by ensuring they have clothes, shoes and family contact through the establishment of a network of supporting churches and volunteers.
We know you are passionate about this work, and its success reflects your heart energy. And as we have seen with other Sullivan Ballou award recipients, your heart not only fuels you but makes you fearless, as when you enter the Ciudad Juarez prison and need to confront corrupt guards, wardens and even the Attorney General.
Sarahi, it has been an honor for us to recognize you in this small way, and we look forward to meeting you. You are receiving the 91st Sullivan Ballou award, and the award list contains activists, advocates, reformers, teachers, artists, healers and business owners who, like you, are making the world a better place. We hope that joining this group will help confirm for you the great gifts you are offering to the world.
Congratulations!
Elissa and Bruce Peterson, Founding Members