This article was authored by a local high school student as part of Lookout’s Journalism Scholarship Challenge
To some, Sara Berman is their boss, their friend, their sister, but she is undoubtedly an unsung hero in Santa Cruz County. Sara is the director of the probation department at the Santa Cruz County juvenile hall. Starting in December 1994 as a group supervisor, Sara has developed strong relationships with her colleagues and, more importantly, the kids she has seen come and go in her 29 years there. Being a young woman herself, starting her work there at just 22 years old, Sara met many kids just a few years younger than her. From her early days there all the way up till now, Sara has always had a strong desire to be a person who could help change these kids’ lives for the better. Sara believes in the importance of being understanding to everyone’s living situations, family life, personal struggles, and anything that could have a strong impact on their life and the choices they make. “They are kids and can be rehabilitated,” she said. “People make mistakes and have hard lives, this does not define any of us. With a team of support like teachers, counselors, positive and caring adults, you can make a difference in a kid’s life.”
When Sara had her first child in 2005, that is when her devotion to help the kids really grew. As she watched her son grow from a baby to a child, she realized how the kids at her work were still young children themselves. She saw how they still had a lot of life to live ahead of them and she made it her goal from that point to make sure she did all she could to help those kids see that for themselves.
Many of Sara’s good friends and colleagues notice her motivation to help these kids and some of the things she does to ensure these kids get to experience childhood activities they would never get the opportunity to do anywhere else. Sonya Drotter, a close friend and colleague, told me how she perceives Sara at work: “She sees them for who they are, not what they’ve done. She provides opportunities for them to be kids; she brings them Halloween costumes on Halloween, celebrates graduations with them, and many other things.”
A story that stands out to Sara starts in 2009. A 15-year-old boy gets brought in due to involvement in a gang murder. One of the first things Sara noticed about him was how well he did while being detained. Even though he was born into a rough childhood and was involved in a gang, he was a good person. He was still in high school when he was arrested, but with the help of the teachers and counselors in juvenile hall, he graduated and enrolled in college during his time there. He stood out to Sara because he was the first kid she had there who had enrolled in college while being there. He was in juvenile hall for 4½ years. While he was there, he took piano classes with a volunteer there to pass the time. Sara got a team recommended in court, the judge ordered him to live with a family outside of the county, and in 2013 he was released. He graduated from UC Davis, was off probation in 2015 and today he works for a nonprofit for fathers and sons in prison. He also does advocacy for young people in gangs and/or on probation.
This is a great example of how Sara’s strong beliefs, motivation and help from others helped change a kid’s life. “Instead of what happened, he could have been in prison until age 25 instead of attending and graduating college!” she said. “Definitely changed and bettered his life!” Sara proves time and time again that not all are the kids at her work great people but that they can also do great things with their lives. For these reasons and so many more, Sara Berman is undoubtedly an unsung hero in Santa Cruz.