Teen entrepreneur sews together plan for success

YOUTHpreneurs are born every day. It’s their drive and passion that elevates them above their peers. Here is a great story we found of one young girl doing just that.

At an age when many girls are preoccupied with school and instant-messaging their friends, 14-year-old Sara Trail has already mastered the craft of sewing, started her own business designing and selling clothes and accessories, and authored a book and DVD that introduce teens to the fun of sewing. Her ambition is to be a fabric or fashion designer. Sara is full of personality. She is precocious, full of hope and ambition, entertaining and motivating. Click here to see a segment from her new DVD. The Secret of Her Success “How did a kid like me get a chance to write a book?” Sara asks. “It was a blessing from God, because He placed a lot of wonderful people in my life.” She credits her achievements to the adult mentors who helped her develop her talent for sewing. The list starts with her mother, who sat Sara on her lap and helped her guide her first quilt under the sewing machine needle at the age of four. A great aunt, a neighbor, and Mrs. Bernie of Queen Bee’s Quilting Shop in Antioch, California, all helped Sara learn to sew quilts, clothes, and accessories at a professional level. Once Sara caught the sewing bug, there was no stopping her. Her parents even had to turn off the power to their house to keep her from getting up to sew in the middle of the night. She began teaching at age 9. “I would make quilts and pillows and show them to my friends at school and church,” she says. “Many of the girls at my church were very interested in learning how to sew.” This inspired the pastor to buy eight sewing machines and start a ministry called The Grace Temple Sewing Studio. Sara and her current mentor Eleanor O’Donnell taught many girls to sew. She has also built a business making custom clothing and accessories for people she knows, and hosting crafting parties where teens make themselves easy-to-sew items like pajama pants and tote bags. “Don’t just Sew It, Sell It!” Self-Sufficiency Through Sewing Simply being a teenage sewing whiz isn’t enough for Sara.  Now she is reaching out to help other young people find mentors like the people who helped her. She persuaded sewing machine manufacturer Janome to donate machines for after school programs. In addition to teaching sewing at her church, she also teaches foster children, all with the goal of helping girls learn a skill that can help support them once they become adults.

If you would like to know more about this inspirational story, visit the publisher’s Web page here.