Photography by Rebecca George
Sarah Ann Kelley: Becoming Visible
On Saturday, June 6, 2026, Beloved Community Cville, in partnership with the Jefferson-Madison Regional Library, celebrated the extraordinary life of Charlottesville native Sarah Ann Kelley.
Sarah’s life has been defined by courage, leadership, and service. Throughout her career, she broke racial and gender barriers in eight different fields while dedicating herself to ministry and advocating for others.
The event brought together friends, congregants, supporters, and family from across the region. James Bryant welcomed guests, and Helena Estes-Johnson shared Sarah’s important role as one of the original Beloved Community Tour docents. Remarkably, Sara has connections to all 16 sites featured on the tour.
Guests also learned about the documentary Sarah Ann Kelley: Becoming Visible, by filmmakers Hannah Ayers and Lance Warren. The film tells the story of Charlottesville through Sara’s life and achievements as a nurse, computer programmer, pastor, and community activist. During the program, Sara was presented with a family history book created by Dr. Shelley Murphy, a genealogist from the University of Virginia, who traced her maternal ancestry back to her fourth great-grandparents.
A highlight of the afternoon was the unveiling of a sculpture of Sarah by Charlottesville artist Rick Weaver. The sculpture is on display in the lobby of the JMRL Central Library alongside a collection of books related to Sara’s life and legacy. After the summer, the exhibit will travel to other community locations.
Stay tuned! The film will be premiering in the fall and in the meantime the sculpture is on exhibit in the lobby of the JMRL Central Library. Check it out!
Sarah’s life has been defined by courage, leadership, and service. Throughout her career, she broke racial and gender barriers in eight different fields while dedicating herself to ministry and advocating for others.
The event brought together friends, congregants, supporters, and family from across the region. James Bryant welcomed guests, and Helena Estes-Johnson shared Sarah’s important role as one of the original Beloved Community Tour docents. Remarkably, Sara has connections to all 16 sites featured on the tour.
Guests also learned about the documentary Sarah Ann Kelley: Becoming Visible, by filmmakers Hannah Ayers and Lance Warren. The film tells the story of Charlottesville through Sara’s life and achievements as a nurse, computer programmer, pastor, and community activist. During the program, Sara was presented with a family history book created by Dr. Shelley Murphy, a genealogist from the University of Virginia, who traced her maternal ancestry back to her fourth great-grandparents.
A highlight of the afternoon was the unveiling of a sculpture of Sarah by Charlottesville artist Rick Weaver. The sculpture is on display in the lobby of the JMRL Central Library alongside a collection of books related to Sara’s life and legacy. After the summer, the exhibit will travel to other community locations.
Stay tuned! The film will be premiering in the fall and in the meantime the sculpture is on exhibit in the lobby of the JMRL Central Library. Check it out!
We’re a multi-racial group of people who came together around a common mission:
to shine the light of truth on our community’s history.
to shine the light of truth on our community’s history.
The Beloved Community Cville Tour is made possible in part by Virginia Humanities
and the Democracy Initiative’s Memory Project at the University of Virginia.
We partner with Light House Studio in creating videos for the tour sites.
and the Democracy Initiative’s Memory Project at the University of Virginia.
We partner with Light House Studio in creating videos for the tour sites.
