Sarah was born and raised in River Forest, and attended Willard elementary and Roosevelt middle school. She married Jeff Eckmann, and they now have three beautiful children: six year old identical twin sons, and a three year old daughter.
In her professional life, Sarah is a graduate of Resurrection University and the University of Georgia. She earned a bachelor’s degree in psychology, and graduated in Psi Chi, the national honor society for psychology. She was the recipient of the academic Lion’s Club Scholarship, Hope Scholarship, and Presidential Scholarships. After completing her BS in psychology, she transitioned over to the nursing field, specializing in Family Lifespan Nursing. Sarah graduated Cum Laude and is part of the Sigma Theta Tau Honor Society for nursing. Sarah also has experience as adjunct faculty sharing her knowledge and expertise with undergraduate nursing students. She currently provides patient care as a nurse practitioner, and has worked at world renowned hospital systems in Chicago, such as Rush University Medical School, Northwestern University Feinberg School of Medicine, Northwestern Medicine, and Resurrection University. Sarah takes pride in working with people from all different cultures, settings, and job backgrounds to problem solve and create an idyllic work and community environment. She fundamentally believes in teamwork and that everyone can offer valued input to create an optimal result.
In her role as mom, she is proud to be raising three wonderful kids. Sarah and Jeff moved their family back to River Forest in 2014, because Sarah knew that this was where she wanted to raise her children. River Forest’s public school system played a significant role in her decision to move back home. As someone who had attended River Forest public schools, Sarah knows the value of the education that District 90 provides.
Social justice is at the core of Sarah’s beliefs, and she has been a lifelong supporter of, and an advocate for, equality, equity, and peace. She has marched and protested for Black Lives Matter, climate change awareness, and to end gun violence in schools. She has brought her kids to rallies to encourage involvement in creating positive change. Children are our future and they need to be guided into activism. She is committed to making the world - and her community - a better, kinder, and more inclusive place.
Sarah is also a volunteer of the Chicago and Oak Park Medical Reserves, and, in this volunteer role, is part of a vaccination POD (Point of Dispensing) team administering the COVID-19 vaccine in our community. As someone who has been on the frontline of fighting COVID-19, both in her work and in her spare time, Sarah has a good understanding of the toll that the pandemic has taken, and the path that we need to follow to create a safe, healthy and cohesive community.