About Sarah

Sarah Peterson was a Maury High School student who loved spending time with her friends and running on the track and cross-country teams. She was an artist who loved to draw and paint, a Girl Scout who enjoyed nature and animals, enjoyed camping and swimming, and was active in her church, First Lutheran of Norfolk.

Sarah lost her battle with depression in January, 2014, when she took her own life three weeks after her 15^th birthday.

Red and black were Sarah’s favorite colors, and she especially loved ladybugs. The red bow has been adopted as the symbol for her foundation as a remembrance of the many red bows that were displayed throughout Norfolk and across the world during and after Sarah’s hospitalization and death.

The Sarah Michelle Peterson Foundation has adapted Sarah’s final words to remind everyone

Depression Is Not Your Fault—STAY ALIVE!