How Sarah Quinn Built a 70-Year Legacy at Opportunity Village While Raising Kids

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Welcome back to another episode here on the Heart and Hustle Podcast. Our next guest says, "At 15, I thought I wanted to be a dancer. Then I worked at a summer camp for kids with disabilities,
and I never looked back." Shout out to Sarah Quinn for just doing the amazing work she's been doing in the community.
So Sarah, you found your life's calling at just 15. Most of us don't even figure that out until much later in our lives.
Um, but walk with us through that moment. What was that middle school special ed classroom experience that really sparked your passion that you still to this day have?
Yeah. So when I was in middle school, we had an opportunity during our study hall to volunteer in the special education classroom. And so I took the opportunity
and spent one period uh a day in that classroom and really found joy in that room. I don't know if it was because of
the particular age I was at where you're a little bit less secure in who you are and what you want to do, but I really enjoyed my time there. And so when I had
the first chance to get a job at 15 and I could work at Camp Cheerful, which was a summer camp for children with disabilities, I jumped and was one of the best decisions I ever made.
I love it. and dancing. Did you continue dancing though? Is that something that you still do? Like what's up with dancing?
Yeah, I also grew up dancing and from the time I was about 5 years old, danced competitively uh both uh after school and for a local
studio through the rest of my life. And so this kind of arts and recreation theme carried through a lot of my
younger years up through the time I went to college.
Wow. Like I I'm a big believer that um you know life just happens and you don't ever know. You have this plan. So I'm
pretty sure before you get into the space of summer camp, what was your vision? You had this plan for yourself.
Was it going to be a professional dancer? Were you going to go and do nursing? Like did you have a thought of anything?
Yeah, dancing for sure. I you know I would have loved to be a I used to always say I wanted to be a backup dancer. It was like all the fun without
any of like the downsides of fame or being a celebrity. you just got to be out there and dance. And I thought that probably would have been something I
might have chased as I got older and life had other plans for me.
If if you could, you know, I'm pretty sure you had this vision of who you wanted to be a backup dancer for. Yeah. Who was it?
You know, I this probably a little like ahead of the like behind the times at the time I was younger, but Janet Jackson, I had a dance teacher
who was a Janet Jackson backup dancer and she was just like the best in my eyes. So that would have been fantastic to know what she's still doing because
she's still doing it, you know. And I'm like, man, hey Sarah, you still could do it, too. I'm just saying you never know. You never know. For sure.
I love it. And then you now you oversee one of the most um comprehensive disability service programs in the country. Help us understand that skill.
Like what does it look like to run programs that serve 1300 people daily and nearly 3,000 annually?
Yeah, Opportunity Village is a wonderful organization. We're based here in Las Vegas. So we serve primarily southern Nevada, both youth and adults with
intellectual and developmental disabilities. So we have a really wide range of programs, dehabilitation and
prevocational training, supported employment, fine and performing arts. So I still get to do a little bit of that.
Uh case management and yeah, we serve about 1300 people a day over almost 100 different locations between community sites and our own OV facilities. So, uh,
it's a big ship, but, uh, we get to do a lot of really meaningful work every day.
Can you talk about how how, you know, we talked about the 15-year-old you and how you got into summer camp, but a lot of people would think that you just got
lucky, right? And I never believe in luck. You've had to see some ups and downs in your life and leadership. What did that journey look like for you that
first of all, did you ever know you're going to be a CEO, right? Probably not.
But what did that journey look like for you? Because I know it wasn't just a overnight success.
Yeah, I you know when I first started it was really about tracing passion, right?
It was I found a niche where I really enjoyed working with this population of people with disabilities. I still loved art and dance and music. And so I
started with a program called very special arts and I got to teach dance to children with disabilities and teach music. Eventually got to oversee that
program and really kind of blend both of those passions that I had and uh still got to stay engaged in camp. I worked
for an organization called Hillcraftoft in Indiana that had a summer camp called camp isogle. So I got to be a camp director for a while which still some of
the best summers of my life and unfortunately due to some funding cuts and and struggles in um in that town and
in that organization camp IGLE closed and so I had kind of a moment to reassess and re-evaluate and figure out what I was going to do next. I had kind
of lost this perfect mashup of all my favorite things. And so I kind of pivoted a little bit to applied behavior
analysis and went back to school to get some more education in that area. And um then I mean maybe a little lucky got an
opportunity to come out to Las Vegas and start working at Opportunity Village which really set me on a new course but same passion and and same general line of work.
So, you left home and decided I'm going to Vegas to pursue this this job. Is that what it was?
Well, I my husband got a job offer in Las Vegas. We lived in rural Indiana at the time. And um who are we to say no to
that opportunity to kind of get up and go across the country. We had never really been, but we were newly married,
ready for something different and exciting. And so, um we packed up and moved across the country just like two months after we got married.
Oh yeah. Yeah. You guys definitely took a uh you guys got uncomfortable per se,
but it all worked out for you guys because I'm pretty sure he's still doing phenomenal and look where you're at today where you're really leading this organization. Can we talk about because
um I one thing that you mentioned was the arts and the dancing and all that and an art piece right behind you was actually from the center that you actually are the leading. Can you talk to us about that?
Yeah, we have a really great fine and performing arts program at Opportunity Village. all of the really wonderful warm and fuzzy things you get from
engagement and exposure in the arts, but we also have kind of an entrepreneurial aspect where artists can create and sell their pieces. So, ovie artstore.org, but
this piece behind me is done by an incredible artist from the program and I'm lucky to own uh several amazing pieces from the folks who participate.
Man, all this while still being a mom. Correct. Yeah. Yeah.
How do you battle both of those? showing up as a leader and then also showing up at home 24/7 because listen, a mom's job never ends. Okay, you're on call all day.
Yeah, you're not joking. I would say very carefully. I I think one of the hardest things about, you know, formally describing myself as a career gal and
then making the pivot into a family person and being a mom was really you have to really pick where you're
concentrating your effort. And you can't be everywhere all of the time. And that can be something that's hard to accept when you're a little bit of like a
go-getter type A. And so, uh, I've had to put up some firmer boundaries for myself to make sure I can really pivot
to being 100% mom mode and pivot back to being, you know, a boss lady when I get to the office.
I can imagine though that your daughter has taught you so much leadership skills in her in itself, right? What are some of the skills you think your daughter's taught you over the years?
Oh gosh, you know, the I I would say the power of letting go. It's really just just the unbridled joy of children and
youth and um has really taught me a lot about being able to release a little bit of the the stress and pressure that we
put on ourselves to be perfect and be organized and be structured. That has really helped me in a lot of ways, not
just uh personally, but even professionally just be a little more creative and a little bit more free and not as rigid.
Your answer is better than mine's. Mine is always patience because Lord, do we need patience, right? And patience with our kids, patience at work. We just
earlier before we got on this call talked about patience, you know, the calls that we get sometimes. No, I I love that. I love that you've been able
to do what you love for all these years and still be an amazing mom and and lead others more importantly. When when you think about just your leadership style
and and what what wins, right? because I can imagine that you have a staff that loves to stay around and it's because of good leadership. What what is that leadership style?
For me, it it's really foundation of connection. We work in human services and that's just not about the people that we serve, but that ex extends to my
colleagues and other folks that I work with and really about knowing the people who the person is, their likes,
dislikes, preferences. Um, but also being a servant leader, not I I don't like to ask folks to do things that I wouldn't do myself. We work in a field that requires a lot of emotional labor.
And so being able to pour into others and show people how to take meaningful rest and pour into themselves is really important in providing strong services to others who may be in need.
I love that. And you've been done doing some amazing things, but we also talked about some of the challenges that come with that as well, which is those tight systems and the tight funding. How do
how do you make it work when you're innovating in this industry?
It can definitely be a challenge. We work in a field where we really want to be innovative and forward thinking, but some of the systems that we work within,
whether it's for funding or for compliance can sometimes a little bit be a little bit more rigid. That can make it difficult to be creative and and try
new things because you still have to meet specific standards or bill things in a certain way. And so we try to strike a good balance. You know, one of
the strengths of Opportunity Village is really a diversity in funding so that we have some flexibility in how we can serve folks and fund things in different
ways, which really is helpful for us because if we could only rely on rigid systems, we would be much further behind
than we are now. And um it also helps us be sustainable. You know, to OV's credit, they've been around over 70 years, which is really incredible for a
service provider um in a town like Las Vegas. I I can imagine you've also have some success stories that are your
favorites. Um you mentioned some before the stop motion um an animation project I believe or the Amanda Show one. Can we
talk about some of your favorites so people can really see some of the things that's happening on the back end?
Yeah. Oh gosh, there's one million stories I could think of that just bring so much joy um and such a smile to my face. But there have been a really few
cool projects lately. Um you mentioned the stop motion. That one has been really incredible. We have a really great art mentor who sparked an interest
in some participants to dive into stopotion animation and they created uh their first film which was completely
handmade from the uh clay characters to the backdrop, the voice over, all of it.
It was so incredible and they took so much pride and joy in that project. And um we've also had opportunities to chase
personal passions. We have a person served who's really interested in being a future talk show host. And so the Amanda Show was an opportunity for her
to film and interview other person served that she works with and staff and get a taste of what it's like to be in the host seat.
I love that. That's exciting stuff. I mean, what these these are individuals that people used to just look past, but
the now these individuals are in our world working alongside us. I've seen so many different organizations that are creating more opportunities um for these
individuals and it's just amazing that you yourself are so even before having kids still had this passion right you mentioned I was a 15-year-old young girl
that just had this passion this drive and and you'll continue to have this passion and drive you know forever so just kudos to you for doing what you do
and I think all this happens when we talk about organizations and nonprofits it doesn't just happen by funding it happens through partnerships you guys have some amazing partnerships that you
guys mentioned in Vegas couldn't we talk a little bit about partnership and why that is so important in building an organization staying around for 70 plus years.
Yeah, I mean not to be cliche but it does take a village quite literally in the sense that having those community partnerships helps us expand our reach.
It helps us expand our resources. You know uh time and energy is limited when you are one person but when you can multiply yourselves to many folks who
are subject matter experts in other areas it really like exponentially increases our ability to provide quality
services. So uh for instance we've partnered with the CTA foundation which is an extension of uh the consumer electronic showcase. So, we've been able
to help, you know, uh, test out new technology and provide feedback from users who experience disabilities and access technology in different ways. We
have a really wonderful network of community employers who are open and willing to learn and hire people with
disabilities and recognize what great employees they make. So, um, we really work hard to maintain and make those
connections in the community because it only makes us do better work.
I love that. I mean, when we think about nonprofits, I think that's the best thing you can do is find partners,
right? Like we just talked about that whole gala that we're hosting. And the biggest thing that I've been telling the organization is now we're not here just to raise money.
We're here to build relationships because the relationship that we build today will provide so much more, you know, years down the line. So I think
that's sometimes and and of course because of the funding cuts everyone's trying to just raise some funds but I think people also need to remember bu
it's building relationships right don't just think that it's about asking but it's about that storytelling aspect is about letting people know you know what you've done and what you continue to do
and I think people buy into that you know so I I love I love some of the things that you guys are doing as well on the performing arts I'm a performing arts head okay I used to do theater so
when I hear that you guys are incorporating that I love that I think we need more of that everywhere. wear, right? Like the the music, the singing,
the dancing, the actual artwork. Um I love the whole creating their own um movie through the like what? Never heard of that. Okay, that's definitely unique.
We also when you talk about um just the spaces that we're in, right, there's we have some some challenging times. We have we talked about the government
funding um being cut but we also have innovation when it comes to AI and what people are doing in that space because I've actually heard an organization that
because of funding had to cut 40 maybe 40 roles um and and now they're like okay we had to cut 40 roles but how can
we still move forward as if we didn't cut 40 rows right and a lot of people are thinking AI the automations the system is that
something that you guys are working on maybe on the back end on the front end what does that look like for your organization.
Yeah, I mean definitely administratively, you know, the leadership team and um we're definitely exploring ways to be more efficient and
ways to be um you know, good stewards of time and resources. So that's always on our radar as far as what tools can we
use to help us in that way. But also for persons served, there's a lot of technology out there that makes uh that can be really helpful to people who
experience challenges. And for us, it's really on that end more about digital citizenship and not just the access to
the technology and how to use it, but also just that awareness of what does it mean to to share my information or to use technology or to engage with things
in that way. So really about education from all angles.
Hey, real quick. If you enjoying the podcast, we first want to say thank you and we also just want to give you a little insight of what we're up to at Francis. Some don't even realize that
we're working with organizations to help them use AI to create that real human communication experiences. Whether that's actually supporting your your
families, those patients or the entire community, we're actually creating tech that connects. Check it out. Francis.ai.
Love that. And is there anything in in the works that you can see could really change the game? Maybe that's things
that you guys are not using but you would love to use that could really change the way you guys are moving the needle.
I would love to see more I think affordable accessible tech. There's a really great uh area of accessible
technology out there but sometimes it can be hard to get into the hands of actual users because the cost of the tech alone um it can be a barrier to
have someone be able to get a device. we can um we we work with folks who can sometimes be hard on equipment and so when something's really expensive and
really fragile, there's a fear that's there. Um so I'd love to see a lot of that accessible tech be uh in the hands of more users at an available price point, I guess, if that makes sense.
Yeah. Yeah. Price point is everything.
Uh especially with AI, I feel like price point is everything. And because it is so new, everyone is kind of giving these outrageous prices when it comes to AI
and it's like you want to use it, but it's like uh maybe we can't afford it as at the moment. So I I love that you're at least looking ahead and figuring out
what will work. Um and I think that when we think about how we can actually help others, you you want people to
understand ability, inclusion, and community. What would you want to tell these individuals that are are listening to this and and thinking about the
ability inclusion and community coming from a leader like yourself?
Yeah, I mean it's really just about humans, right? Like when the work that we're doing is about accessibility, it's about inclusion. It's about welcoming
others into our community. And while that is definitely something that we advocate for for our population, any effort in that those areas are
beneficial to all. So we often get the example of there's a lot of um services and technology out there available to
seniors and a lot of that is also a cognitive accessibility feature to folks for disabilities and thinking about kind
of ways we can promote inclusion and accessibility for all still is great for the people that we serve. It's not just
about them. It's for more meaningful engagement in the community for all of us. And so it doesn't have to be so specific. I think sometimes folks get
overwhelmed about, you know, one particular population, but what we're really advocating for is, you know, just
welcoming and inclusive spaces for for all of us.
Yeah. How can listeners get involved? I mean, through volunteering partnerships or any inclusive hiring like if you could just kind of give us an insight.
People are probably listening wanting to know how do we get involved in this organization?
Yeah, I mean all of all of the above. We we like to make the joke that there's very little things that we can say no to in our world. So volunteering is also
like always an incredible option. You know, donations and financial support will never be turned down. But as far as
the wider community, we definitely encourage folks to ask questions and get involved. Um to your point, whether that's being open to hiring people with
disabilities, having training for your teams that helps um them understand the population and support them as consumers
or as customers of your businesses organizations.
We really love to be in as many spaces as we can and so there's very few ways we can't find a way to partner with someone to make it better for the people that we serve. After 23 years here,
Sarah, and doing this work, what's the most rewarding part of that purpose-driven leadership for you?
It's the people. It's not just going to work and having the connections of folks that I've known for my entire tenure of Opportunity Village. Um, for person
served, getting to watch like a front row seat to some incredible growth,
folks trying new things, accomplishing goals, like that will always be such a driver. But really too, the people that
I'm sitting next to that my co-workers and colleagues and other people in the space really wonderful human beings. And
that is also valuable to be in a space where work is always going to be work.
It's not always going to be sunshine and rainbows, but I know that I am alongside some of the best people. And that um you
can't put a value on that, I don't think.
Yeah. I love I love your energy. I feel though I can't imagine this is like 100% all the time. Yeah.
Right.
Who are those that um you look to in a time of needing to recharge uh rewire the brain? Is it the kids? Is it just
you know going back to the front line and working with those individuals? What what does that look like for you?
Because so many people, you know, I always say that as leaders, we were always we're not taught how to pour into ourselves while we pour into others. So
who's pouring into you during these times? Yeah. Gosh, there's a lot of ways and I think uh in in more recent times,
we've had a lot of unprecedented times as we all know. So, there's been a lot more exploring those stress relievers and those ways to recharge. You know,
home life is definitely a big one.
Having my daughter has really helped me with new perspective and a different lens to look at at life, which has been
such a benefit. But also sometimes it's like coloring on my iPad or I still ballroom dance and so getting to move my
body and um definitely going back to the people that we serve. So in fine performing arts we have a big showcase every year. It's called Ovation and I I
got to MC one of the community shows and really just getting to be backstage and feel all the excitement and the energy of them getting ready to perform. that
really grounds me back in that 15year-old version of myself that was just having the time of my life and just also getting a paycheck.
I can imagine. Is this is this something that you put together? Was it already there before you got there?
Uh it's long. Yeah, before I got there is I think this was our 12th or 13th year doing the show. So just before my my time arriving at OV, but uh I might be biased, but event.
Oh man, I can imagine, man.
any of those events are very stressful to put together, but when you get to really see the outcome and the talent that is being shown to the audience.
Yeah, for sure. That that can definitely be the cup filler um per se. I love this. I love this. Where can people find more about the organization? Are they
wanted to find out more? Are you guys on social media? What is the website? Are you on LinkedIn?
Yeah, all the above. Uh opportunityvillage.org is where you can find more about the organization. Uh lots of good work there and we are
always eager and willing to connect to folks. not just, you know, businesses and community members, but other providers. You know, we're all I'd love
to talk inside baseball about what's working, what's not working. So, you know, we're all kind of on this journey together.
I love it. So, I'll leave you with this last question that we have, the blind question.
If your 15-year-old camp counselor self can see you now leading thousands through opportunity village, what what would she say? You think?
I gosh, I want to say she would probably say uh like what next? Like how like if
this is what you're doing now, like what could possibly be next?
Yeah. Do you ever think about that? What could be next? H you know sometimes I think right now my life has been a
little bit more inside looking with my daughter and my family and uh you know I don't know that I give it too much
thought about what's next but I I I hope something in a beautiful space you know recently I had I was speaking to this leader and
what a great conversation so this man spent 20 years in corporate and um he was in software and data or something
like that and had went through a situation where his mother-in-law passed away and his mother-in-law, he said,
always hated his job. She just felt like that was a horrible job for him. And she says, you know, hopefully one day your job could be helping others. And that's what he told me, right? And I'm like,
wow. And that's the line of work that we're in, Sarah, and it does win all the time. So that's So he ended up getting into um elderly care, home at home care,
and it's his first year doing this, been in corporate for 20 years. And I was like, how does it feel? He's like, "It feels so good." Actually, he says,
"Financially, we're still trying to get it together." He says, "But the work feels so good." And I can imagine for you as well, Sarah, like the work feels
so good. So, we can't think of anything others things to do. Like, I just want to help these people. You know, you found the group, that niche of people that you want to help that,
you know, going back when you were 15 years old looks completely different of what it looks like here in 2025, right?
Like night and day on the energy that's being put into these individuals. So, I don't know, Sarah. I think that you're you're winning in what you're doing today, you know? I don't know that there
you could do anything else. Unless you're going to go help a different community, but what a community to actually help. I love it.
Yeah. No, I'm I'm I'm very fortunate in that way. And I I think I think you hit the nail on the head. It's just like it's so good now. What could I possibly think of that I could do different?
Unless Unless someone Unless Janet Jackson, he's a backup dancer, then then we're talking, right? Then then you maybe you'll think a little differently.
But no, that's so great. That's so great that you're still doing the ballroom as well.
Um, you just never know what happens to that. And I'll give you a quick story before we start to wrap up. I love wrestling and I always have loved wrestling and I always told myself as a
young kid like, "Oh man, one day, you know, I'll be working doing wrestling stuff." And, um, two years ago, um,
wrestling to me was like the escape from reality. So, I did it because it just brought me peace. Can imagine dance brings you that peace. Yeah.
So, I said, um, you know, I'm going to build a a wrestling community. So, I started going live um, every Monday and Friday. And my wife was like, "What is
this? Like a hobby? Like what are you doing?" I'm like, "It's just give me some time. Okay, let's see what happens." Uh, it was definitely that passion project or, you know, a purpose project, whatever you want to call it.
And the opportunities that really came from that of doing the things that you love, they will open doors. So Sarah,
everything that you're doing today will continue to open doors because you do what you love and you show up naturally you. And I appreciate that. I appreciate the way that you showed up today on this
conversation. um naturally you and just for the things that you do for the community that you're in like
you're always going to be blessed for that in itself. So I appreciate you Sarah. Do you have a blind question for our next leader?
Yeah, you know we talked a lot about connections and for leaders we can sometimes get bogged down in the admin and the strategy and the logistics. I
would love for the next guest to answer the question, what keeps you connected to the work?
What keeps you connected to the work you do? I love that. That is a actually a really good question, Sarah. Sarah, we we thank you. We thank you for your time. We thank you for that blind question. That's actually a really good
question. Um, and it's sometimes I hear these blind questions and it'd be like a little bit challenging. This one is not as challenging. It's very short, but it
it'll definitely make you think. So, I definitely love that one. But guys, if you guys are still watching, make sure that you guys do go ahead and follow Sarah. Make sure that you guys check out the organization. Remember, it's not
always about a dollar. It's about the connections. It's about the volunteering. It's about doing things that sometimes they don't even know they need until you show up and say, "Hey,
this is what I do for a living. Can I help you?" And then they have the creative ideas behind it to figure out where you work best. If you're in a if
you're in a place of wanting to get your cup filled, go find an organization that that just resonates with what you love.
There's so many out there. This is just one of them. So Sarah, we thank you. My name is Ephrain. This is Sarah. We'll catch you guys on the next one. I just

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