Interesting fact: On Sundays, you can find Sandra in a clown costume, entertaining her Sunday School kids and laughing hard at herself!
Sandra Sorial joined the Free The Children team in 2008, overseeing the head office's operations and liaising with our regional offices in California and Montreal. Originally from the land of the Pharaohs, Sandra's passion for development was ignited during her Grade 6 visit to the garbage collectors village slum in upper Cairo. There, children carried garbage bags on their backs containing broken glass and used syringes, leaving them with severe infectious diseases. Appalled, Sandra coordinated her first school project to raise awareness about the issue and help those children lead healthier lives.
After graduating from high school in Sacre-Coeur, Cairo, Sandra started her B.A. in international studies and political science. In her graduating year, she became a member of the Independent Study Project on the Great Lakes of Africa Study, which involved organizing an international conference and a research trip to Kenya, Tanzania, Rwanda and the Congo. A year later, she was back in East Africa to volunteer on a humanitarian trip to Kenya and Tanzania with the Changing Lives Group, followed by another trip to help at-risk youth in Aroland, a First Nations reserve in Northern Ontario. Sandra led delegations and organized leadership simulations for Model United Nations and Model European Parliament (SPECQUE) in Canada, the U.S. and Europe, working with youth on political and development issues. She went on to complete her master's degree in international development and development management at the University of Manchester, England. She has worked on various development projects in Cairo, Kenya and Ghana, but has built most of her professional experience in development and communications in the non-profit sector in Canada, and is happy to be finally working in the field she loves here.
When Sandra is not at work, she is often catching up with family and friends, enjoying the outdoors and planning her next adventure travel trip. She believes happiness is a journey, not a destination. On her journey, Sandra loves to connect with people, learn about cultures and spread smiles around her.