Meet Author Sondra Clark

If you think you have to wait until you reach adulthood to make a difference in the world, spend a few minutes with 18-year-old Sondra Clark from Bellingham, Washington. Sondra has traveled the world, volunteering in a plethora of situations where she saw a need she could fill. She is also the author of seven books, including her latest work titled 77 Creative Ways Kids Can Serve. An incredibly busy person, Sondra was kind enough to squeeze in this interview between her volunteering efforts and performing in two plays last week. Prepare to be inspired. ;)

GCW: Have you ever been injured or encountered any setbacks while pursuing your dream?

Sondra: I’ve never been injured, but have had setbacks. I wrote my sixth book, SNAP 2IT!: A Real Girl’s Guide to Staying Positive and it was supposed to come out in March 2006. Because of a cover design problem, they postponed the release of the book an entire year.

Another time, I collected 5,000 pens, 3,000 toothbrushes and 500 Frisbees to send to Lima to kids I met there, living in the slums. The boxes got held up in customs for 8 months. We tried and tried to get customs to release the items, but they said the toothbrushes were medical supplies and then destroyed everything! It really upset me because I knew how the kids could use those items.

GCW: Wow. I’m glad to see that did not discourage you from continuing your volunteer work. What is your favorite tool or piece of equipment that you use while on volunteer missions?

Sondra: My favorite tool is a power drill my dad gave me when I was 11. When I first got it I drilled holes in lots of things because it was fun. Now I use it for decorating or building projects. I like putting pieces of furniture together that come in kits like from IKEA.

GCW: What are some of the highlights of your life so far?

Sondra: One of the highlights of my career was carrying the Olympic torch for the 2002 Olympics. It’s quite a feeling running down a street with helicopters overhead and the crowds screaming “Go Sondra! USA! USA!” I’ve had amazing experiences doing job shadows. Just spending the day with Shamus trainer was great. I helped her put vitamins in dead salmon and then gave it to Shamu. (He didn’t like his vitamins)

GCW: That sounds like a lot of fun! Have you ever been told you “can’t” because you are a girl?

Sondra: I can’t think of a time when I was told, “You can’t do that because you are a girl”. I think it’s the same reason I’ve never been bullied. I’m not scared to stand up for myself. You can be self-confident without being stuck up. People see I have confidence in my abilities so they don’t doubt I can do what I want. I went to three completely different high schools. Each time I had to make adjustments and find new friends. Even in that situation, no one ever picked on me or belittled me. I think it boils down to being strong and not always worrying about what other people are thinking.

GCW: Do you have a favorite event or memory?

Sondra: I’ve been volunteering all my life. I was asked to volunteer to be in a video for cloth diapers when I was six months old. My mom said I kept crawling away, so they didn’t get the shots they needed. Since then I’ve been a spokesperson for Childcare Worldwide, based here in B’ham and also a spokesperson for Soles4Souls, based in Nashville. I’ve volunteered in every way from cleaning bathrooms at a shelter to working on the Katrina efforts to serving breakfast in the slums of Peru. I guess it’s just a natural part of my life. I don’t think “Oh today I should volunteer somewhere.” If I see a need, I just try and help out. I also try and encourage other people to volunteer. That’s why I speak to schools, churches and service clubs across the country and write the books I do. People see me and think if an ordinary kid can volunteer, then they can too.

When I was 12, I went to Kenya and Uganda. We took a float plane to visit a remote island that didn’t have electricity or running water. I met the kids and was so impressed with their enthusiasm for life¦even though most of them were orphans. They lived in clean but bare buildings, with one houseparent for 20 children. I brought 140 T-shirts. We spread them out on the ground. Then the teacher gave each kid a leaf as pretend money. They got to pick out a shirt and then “pay” me with the leaf. The teacher wanted to teach them what a store was like. Afterwards she told me this was the first time they had gotten to pick out their own clothes. Normally they just take whatever hand me downs someone gives them. I also served breakfast in Lima Peru. Childcare Worldwide gives 11,000 children breakfast every morning. As I was serving them bread and fortified milk, one of the staff told me this was the only meal most of these kids get until the next morning. That made a big impression on me. Last summer, we were in rural villages of Guatemala, giving away shoes through Soles4Souls. We met kids who ran over rocky paths barefoot because they didn’t even own a pair of shoes. They were so thankful to get the shoes we gave them.

When I was 12, we took a year and traveled around the US for a year in an RV. Every Sunday I spoke at a different church or school, asking people to sponsor a child through Childcare worldwide. Many pastors were “scared” to turn over the pulpit to a 12 year old. They thought I’d be shy or nervous. After each presentation, the pastor would say, “If I had known you had such a good message, I would have given you more time.” Once I spoke to kids in Ramstein Army Base in Germany. They didn’t want to be there and talked and scowled at me the whole time. You just have to keep doing the best you can.

GCW: That’s great advice for us all. What other interests do you have?

Sondra: Performing arts plays a big role in my life. I auditioned for Western’s Summer Stock when I was 5 and got a part in Fiddler on the Roof. Since then I’ve done humorous monologues across the country for thousands of people. I just finished playing Fantine in BHS’ Les Miserable, which was an amazing experience. Being in drama teaches you so much about reading an audience, taking control of situations, and having confidence in yourself. People with strong public speaking skills can get through job interviews with ease. Because I do TV and radio appearances, I’ve used my performing arts skills to know how to answer tricky interview questions and how to stay positive when an interviewer is a bit on the cranky side. I was on QVC three times. In order to get on the show, you have to attend “QVC College”. At first they didn’t want me to attend, because I was 13. Then they saw how I answered questions and they let me on. That’s not to be bragging, but to say that public speaking opens a lot of doors! I think high school students should take as many performing or public speaking jobs as possible. Those skills transfer over to every aspect of life.

Like all teenagers, I like to hang out with my friends. My family travels a lot, so whenever we have a few days off, we’ll go explore a new place. Over spring break we went canyoneering in Mt. Zion National Park.

We moved to Nashville during my sophomore and junior year. I went to a small, conservative Christian school where we didn’t even have locks on the lockers. Coming to BHS was a big adjustment but I’ve loved every minute of my senior year. As I mentioned, we spent 12 months in an RV when I was 12. I was also asked by the National Parks and Recreation Association to write a book about various job shadow experiences. So as a part of my homeschooling, I job shadowed over 555 people. This included spending the day with David Letterman’s talent booker, Shamu’s trainer at SeaWorld, a shoe designer at Nike and a model designer at LegoLand. It was amazing seeing all the different career possibilities!

After graduation, I hope to get a job in Bellingham to help pay for college. Then I’m off to Baylor. I’ll probably major in some sort of marketing and communications program. I enjoy public speaking as well as marketing. I’ve had to market my books, so I have some experience in that area. My ideal job would be to be some sort of investigative reporter. Because of all my job shadow experiences, I feel comfortable being thrust in new situations.

GCW: Sondra – thanks for the amazing interview. We look forward to hearing more forom you in the future. Please keep in touch!

You can find Sondra’s books online at Amazon.com.