Sarah Baker moved here with her husband, Stephen, a few years ago and has fallen in love with Shreveport-Bossier City. She loves her job as the Northwest Louisiana regional director for the American Heart Association, and her mission is to educate our community on the risks of heart disease. She has also found a passion for photography and documenting her daughter, Annie Beth Baker through the camera (and iPhone) lens. Sarah told us how she manages life as a working mom and how she hopes to change Shreveport-Bossier City.
You are a wife, mother, the NWLA regional director for the American Heart Association, and you have your own photography business on the side. How do you find balance with all of it?
BAker: Who said I balance? Just kidding. But honestly, I can say there are good days and bad days. That’s just me being real. I know the key to my own success is running our household like a team. Each morning my husband and I do all hands in with our little girl and say, ‘Go Team Baker!’ and as cheesy as this sounds, it’s true. If it weren’t for my husband, who understands the life of someone in nonprofit, we wouldn’t make it. We approach our weeks with as much team spirit as we can. Whether it’s pick up at school, MD appointments, or even grocery shopping, we get it done only because we work in tandem. The photography thing started as a hobby to give me a creative outlet. Sarah Baker Photos has turned into a family business that involves all of us. My husband second shoots with me on occasion, and we really enjoy spending that time together. I can’t wait to teach our daughter how to see the beauty of our world through her lens!
Q: What is your advice to new working mothers? BAker: My advice to new mothers is ‘You’re going to make it.’ Just take one day at a time and be flexible because that will be a requirement to get through each day. Kids will pull you away from work from time to time, and that’s just life. Always put your family first because jobs can come and go, but your family will always be there.
Q: What is your favorite thing about living and working in Shreveport? BAker: I’m originally from Oklahoma and became a Louisianian (is that a word?) by marriage. This community has welcomed me, even though my understanding of parades and crawfish don’t always compute. The best part about living and working in Shreveport is the friendly and warm atmosphere that exists here. I know, I know, it’s the South, but it’s different here. It’s a small town, with metropolitan moments. This is a community that gives with their whole heart, in anything they do. When someone is in need, this community comes to their rescue, and that’s a place you want to raise your children. Working with this community on improving our heart health is sometimes an uphill battle (Can you say fried chicken?), but by working with local corporate partners that understand the importance of changing the way we live and eat, we are making a difference. I’m starting to see it, which is really encouraging to me. Now, put down the fried chicken!
Q: How do you hope to change the Shreveport-Bossier City community in your role with the AHA? BAker: I have heart disease and stroke in my family. I’ve lost many loved ones to both disease, and I’m able, through my job, to share their stories, and make a difference in our community. Heart disease is the No. 1 killer of all those living in our state. I definitely feel the full weight of the burden to change that statistic. The cool thing is that if I’m successful, less people living in this community will die from heart disease. It’s 80 percent preventable, people! Lets start preventing it! I hope that I can look back in a year, or five years, and see the changes our community has made. It’s a clear path to prevent heart disease. Stop smoking, get some exercise, know your family health history, cut sugary beverages and salt from your diet and know your numbers (cholesterol, blood pressure). By taking these steps, you’re one up on heart disease and stroke.
Q: You used to blog, but now you seem to have a bigger presence on Instagram. What was the reason you changed? Is this a new way to express yourself? BAker: I did have a blog! I miss blogging so much. But it goes back to realizing that I can’t do it all. Blogging fell to the wayside about a year ago when my photography business picked up and life with a toddler really hit. I started my blog to keep in touch with my family in Oklahoma so now I do that through Instagram. My daughter’s greatgrandmothers are on Instagram. They start their day catching up on our lives that way. If I forget to post, I get a call! Instagram has become a quick and easy way for me to stay in touch and have a visual diary of our life in Louisiana. Ninety-five percent of my posts are my daughter … so don’t follow me unless you want to see lots of #BirdieBaker pics (@ bakerhousephotos).
