Holiday Message from Sara
Sara Zier, Director of Legal Services
by Sara Zier
Hi TeamChild Community,
I have been with TeamChild for over 12 years. My work is often different than the work of other attorneys – my clients are young people, and to be effective, I have to meet them exactly where they are, physically, emotionally, and developmentally. I travel to detention facilities, emergency rooms, shelters, McDonald’s, and family homes surrounded by relatives and household pets (eating home-cooked Guamanian food and holding a guinea pig are job perks, for sure)!
I feel tremendous affection and admiration for my clients and their strengths, and I feel the complexity and weight of the system failures and inequities they face. Each case I work on is as unique as the young person who we are representing, and that means our legal advocacy must be innovative and creative. Working with youth, I experience hope for them to achieve their goals, despair when new challenges stack up or solutions are unclear or insufficient, and joy in building relationships and sharing information, meals, and even memes.
What I love about my clients – every single one of them – is getting to know their strengths and interests. All of my clients have goals and dreams even while facing really complex issues and systems that have failed them time and time again: housing instability, unsafe home or family situations, unfair and racist discipline at school. Sometimes, these problems are so big and so systemic that they can feel overwhelming – how will we make this work for this young person under these circumstances? At Team Child, we are driven to create solutions that serve our clients while remaining committed to our holistic approach to client needs.
Donate Today - Support Holistic Care for Youth
At Team Child, we are driven to create solutions that serve our clients while remaining committed to our holistic approach to client needs. Already this year, I have:
helped a client who was experiencing homelessness to get court fines lifted and their juvenile records sealed, leading to more employment and housing options;
helped a client gain housing and get some art to decorate their first apartment;
visited a client in the hospital because they did not have housing where they could get community-based treatment, and brought them Legos and books while we worked on plans;
celebrated a former client at their baby shower years after our legal work together finished;
advocated for a child’s readmission to school and helped them research vocational programs in between school meetings where we advocated;
brainstormed with a client who is incarcerated about their ideas for social services and mentorship for youth so they can do social justice work when they re-engage in the community.
These holistic approaches are the special thing about TeamChild and how we do our work. It is not just our direct legal advocacy that benefits our clients; it’s our holistic approach to services. We see our young clients as just that: young people who deserve comfort, security, and the opportunity to dream. Bringing a youth their favorite snack while they are incarcerated or in a hospital or a shelter also makes an impact. Just taking time and listening about more than their legal problems matters. Because all of these things say to them, you are not alone. You are not alone. I see you. We are going to work together, and we are going to get your needs met.
Every year, thanks to your support, more than 750 young people experience the kind of dedicated, holistic legal representation I am describing. I am so proud of all our attorneys and incredible youth clients, who envision a more just world and literally speak it into existence every day. When TeamChild advocates, we’re making change in a young person’s life, and we’re also building pathways of rights for all the children and young people to come.
Likewise, when you support TeamChild with a gift today, you are helping us build those pathways, too. We invite you to co-create a more just world for every child and young person in Washington state.
Please give today to support our youth.
In community,
Sara
PS – All young people should be able to go to school, stay safe and stably housed, and be surrounded by adults who care about them. Help make this a reality with a gift to support TeamChild’s holistic, youth-centered legal advocacy today!
