Staff & Lay Leaders

Sarah Higginbotham grew up as a preacher’s kid in a UCC church in Connecticut, where she developed a love of choral singing and a passion for infusing worship with artistic expression. When she left home and began searching for a new church, she realized how much she valued the multigenerational aspects of church life, particularly when children and adults collaborate to create meaningful worship experiences.

While Sarah first came to First Church to sing in the choir in 1996, she became a member and served as a lay leader on several committees before joining the First Church staff in 2004. Sarah developed a children’s worship and arts program that allows adults to share their artistic talents with the children of the church. She has since expanded her role to include supervision of the church school and nursery, as well as the fostering of new family ministry initiatives. And as First Church developed a more comprehensive communications strategy in 2020, Sarah took on a leadership role on the Communications Team.

Sarah received her Bachelor’s degree in Religious Studies and Psychology from Smith College and her Master of Social Work degree from Simmons College School of Social Work. Her work experience includes clinical practice with children and families; consultation to schools serving students with special needs; and teaching traditional songs, singing games, circus and theater skills to people of all ages.