Jan Sawyer takes a short break from volunteering for many different organizations throughout Fulton County. Photo provided by Jan Sawyer.

By Wendy Melton
InkFreeNews

ROCHESTER – For Jan Sawyer, helping others is second nature. Whether working as a speech pathologist or serving as a volunteer, she has always tried to be there when others needed her.

Sawyer was born and raised in Rochester and is a graduate of Indiana University. She married her husband, Tom, in May 1977 and together they raised two children, Leah and Nathan.

As a speech pathologist, Sawyer worked for North Miami Schools where she helped students overcome a variety of speech problems, giving them the tools they needed to communicate effectively. She credits her brother as an inspiration for her career.

“My brother had problems,” Sawyer said. “He’s two years younger than I am, and back in the day, when we were younger, we didn’t have the type of services we have today. He actually had to go live at IU to get what I would call pretty extensive services so he could learn to talk. He was 5 years old and had three words. He was what we called language delayed.”

Sawyer said her family regularly visited her brother on campus during the two years he received services.

“We would all get in the car and go,” she said. “We did that for two years until he had language good enough to start school.”

Jan Sawyer rings in the holiday season by volunteering for several organizations. Photo provided by Jan Sawyer.

Sawyer admits she liked the school and its play areas so much she often asked her parents to take her brother home and let her stay.

Her brother, Jerry, was not the only family member who influenced her volunteer work.

“My sister had mental health problems. It was because of her that I started working with the Fulton County Mental Health Association. It was an organization made up of volunteers. We did a Christmas drive, I’m talking back in the 80s, that really helped spearhead the big Christmas drives we have now. We were one of the few that were doing that,” she added.

Sawyer is also the acting vice president of Fulton County Hope. In that role, she helps conduct meetings and supports the president in keeping the organization moving forward.

”It’s a good organization,” she said. “The people are really kind and sweet, and I’m amazed at what some of them do. They really put themselves out there.”

One of Sawyer’s favorite volunteer activities is cooking. She helps prepare community meals at Grace Church and assists with serving meals at several different organizational meetings.

“I’m training a girl to cook,” she said. “It’s a lot of work. You have to plan and then do the cooking. It takes two days to do it.”

After several years, Sawyer said she is ready to pass the torch on to the next generation.

“I’ve just always been a doer. I’d rather do something for somebody,” she said. “Other than reading, it’s probably what I enjoy the most. Part of that is because I worked with the kids. I loved my job. I couldn’t understand people who didn’t love their job.”

Sawyer retired in 2012 but continued contract work for another six years.

Although she’s ready to step back from cooking duties, Sawyer said she will continue to volunteer for as long as she can. Helping others comes naturally to her, and her commitment to supporting her siblings has turned into a journey of helping others in a variety of ways.

From serving as the president of Tri Kappa in the 1980s to supporting the work of Fulton County Hope and many other local organizations, Sawyer continues to make a lasting impact throughout the community.