Sarah Connolly is the recently called Assistant Director of Communication for The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints in Ireland. She is responsible for all things digital on the island of Ireland, as well as in her local congregation.
Sarah served an 18-month mission for the Church in the Canada Toronto Mission. She completed her mission in March of 2020 and returned home the day Ireland went into lockdown due to the Covid-19 virus. Along with very many others, she has been in lockdown since that time.
She did a considerable amount of volunteer work before her mission. While in Canada, she discovered a love for teaching and for sharing her faith. Being involved in Communication allows her to both serve and share her beliefs.
Transitioning from the active lifestyle of a full-time missionary to the more sedentary life of lockdown has been a challenge, but Sarah has met it head-on. She feels “a deep gratitude for the time we have been given to improve ourselves, to ponder and to come to know the Lord and His work better. When we look for the good, we will find the good”.
In addition to her Communication assignments she serves on the Church Leadership Council for the Scotland and Ireland Young Adults and has been a large part of uniting the two groups this year. She serves on the Europe Council of JustServe, a movement to match volunteers with service needs, and is co-creating a new platform to implement the programme in Europe over the next year.
Sarah also serves church members in her local area by teaching a free English class twice a week as part of their Self Reliance curriculum. She became involved in this on her mission and initiated it here on her return. She hopes to extend the programme throughout Scotland and Ireland this summer.
Additionally, Sarah oversees teaching of teenage girls in her local congregation as well as being the technology specialist. She considers technology a huge blessing, adding that the lockdown has pushed her to “learn more about Zoom and other programs . . . and understand how to use them”.
In her educational life, Sarah takes online university classes. Before her mission she studied Event Management, in Dublin. Since returning she has transferred to online courses at Brigham Young University studying Business Management. She has recently added courses in digital communications and social media content to guide in her many responsibilities.
Sarah tries to stay positive and self-motivated each day, despite lockdown. She acknowledges that “the Lord is preparing me and is using me, and all of us, in the ways He needs us right now! I know He helps me magnify and fulfil my volunteer callings. He taught me that imperfect and willing people are exactly what He wants and who He has called.”