Bell Hopes to Take Volunteer Passion to Gold Dome

Leading up to the June 21 special election, Patch is profiling each of the candidates for the 113th District State House seat, which represents Oconee and part of Clarke County. Look in the coming days for profiles of , and .

A lifelong volunteer, Sarah Bell sees elected office as another opportunity to give back to her community.

Bell, who has lived in Athens or Oconee County since 1978, when she came to graduate school at the University of Georgia, has spent the majority of her life as an educator, Red Cross volunteer and advocate for stray cats and dogs. Now, for the District 113 State House seat, hoping to take her public service passion to Atlanta.

“The Red Cross and animal thing are all service oriented; this is another avenue to serve the people in,” said Bell, 56, who has worked as an educator for 30 years, including the last five at . “I was urged by many friends to seek this office. It was not something that I had been really thinking about.”

Bell is a part-time adjunct professor in the Humanities and Fine Arts school. She earned a bachelor's degree from Furman University, and a master's and doctorate from UGA. She previously taught English at Prince Avenue Christian School, UGA and Parkwood Christian Academy in Lilburn. 

Long before Bell co-founded We Care Animal Haven with Margaret Skinner, who was in her Sunday school class at Prince Avenue Baptist in Athens about 20 years ago, she had a kitten named Hunky Dunk. Bell, who was 13 at the time and living in Atlanta, “just fell in love.”

Bell said she made the mistake of touching Hunky Dunk, “and then the mama wouldn’t have anything to do with it any more.”

More than two decades ago, Bell and Skinner co-founded We Care, a group that rescues and places dogs and cats. They achieved non-profit status in 2009. Bell said because of the struggling economy, local residents sometimes have to give up their pets along with their house. In a recent two-week period, she said the group rescued 17 kittens.

We Care Animal Haven is a PetSmart adoption partner, Bell said, which helps find qualified homes.

“They can’t talk to you in words, but they’re grateful,” Bell said of the animals.

Skinner said she and Bell had realized at church that they both had a passion for animals; Bell wanted to spay and neuter, while Skinner was interested in a no-kill shelter. Skinner said they envisioned something like the Best Friends Animal Society in Utah, which is the nation’s largest sanctuary for abused and abandoned animals.

Skinner said animals are one of many of Bell’s passions, along with teaching, church and helping others. She said Bell is compassionate and honest.

“She doesn’t have a dishonest bone in her body,” Skinner said. “Don’t ask if you don’t want to know.”

During her 22 years as a Red Cross volunteer, Bell helped victims of house fires, severe storms and Hurricane Katrina evacuees. One night in the immediate aftermath of Katrina, she slept on the floor of an Athens shelter holding the phone in case someone else needed help.

Because she was a board member, she helped raise money, organize and train about 800 volunteers and complete paperwork from 12 counties that surrounded Athens-Clarke County.

“When someone’s house burns down, we’re almost there before the firemen,” Bell said. “To me, it’s a really noble thing to do. It’s very satisfying. I believe in what they do, I’ve seen it work on the local level, and I’ve seen the faces of people we’ve helped. That’s all the reward you’ll ever need.”

That reward only came after Bell looked into volunteering because she was embarrassed that she had never given blood until graduate school.

Henry Mauldin volunteered with Bell at the Red Cross for about four years; he worked in disaster services, while Bell was in blood services, before she became a supervisor. Mauldin said he “couldn’t have had a better partner,” and Bell was very adamant about “getting it right.”

“The Red Cross gave her a better insight into people,” he said.

Mauldin was with Bell at a home in Jackson County, which was the first time she encountered a death while doing disaster relief. A man learned that his wife had died in the home, but firefighters wouldn't let him inside, Bell said. She said because the man was upset, it was difficult to complete paperwork to help him.

“She was pretty upset,” Mauldin said of Bell's reaction. “She went through it, and is a better person for it, and can understand what can happen.”

Added Bell, "It was not a happy experience, but I saw that night the value of Red Cross work, since he had lost absolutely everything in the fire.  Without our help, he would have had no clothes, food, or place to stay." 

This isn’t Bell’s first foray into politics. She had a narrow loss to Melvin Davis in 2008 for the chair of the Oconee County Board of Commissioners.

She’s also active in the Oconee County Republican Party, and formerly served as chairwoman. In the mid-1990s, she was appointed by then-Governor Zell Miller to the Georgia Commission on Women.

Bell said she realizes the sacrifice of running for public office, and the possibility she would have to relinquish, or cut back on, her volunteer work. Bell is not married, and doesn't have any children. 

“It’s always a sacrifice to run,” Bell said. “It takes your time, it takes your money, it takes your energy. It takes everything you’ve got to run, and that’s why a lot of people don’t do it.

Skinner said Bell chose to run because she saw a need to get good people in office.

“People challenged her to do this, and she prepared for it and decided to go for it,” Skinner said. “Her own agenda is only what’s best for the people.”