Sarah Hardwig was born with a congenital condition caused Leber Congenital Amaurosis. She has been blind all her life. Although many people would see her blindness as a setback, Sarah has never let it stop her from pursuing her dreams.
Sarah loves to sing.
Her parents instilled a love for music in her at a young age, and she has been singing since she was a toddler. Sarah said that she has always known that she wanted to be a musician and wasn’t about to let her blindness stop her.
According to Blindness.org:
“Leber congenital amaurosis (LCA) is an inherited retinal degenerative disease characterized by severe loss of vision at birth. A variety of other eye-related abnormalities including roving eye movements, deep-set eyes, and sensitivity to bright light also occur with this disease. Some patients with LCA also experience central nervous system abnormalities. Individuals with LCA have very reduced vision at birth. Within an infant’s first few months of life, parents usually notice a lack of visual responsiveness and unusual roving eye movements, known as nystagmus. Eye examinations of infants with LCA reveal normal appearing retinas.”
Sarah has performed at dozens of venues over the years.
Her Facebook page says that she has performed the National Anthem more than 100 times. Sarah said that her success has a lot to do with her supportive family and friends. She said:
“My mom played it around the house a lot…I got into music when I was about three or four years old and I just instantly knew, BOOM, that I wanted to be a musician, I want to be a successful singer-songwriter.”
She got her big break when she was found by Aerosmith’s Steven Tyler while he was performing at Marty Stuart’s Late Night Jam at the Ryman Auditorium in Nashville. After noticing how amazing the girl could sing, he invited her to join him in a duet of “Stand By Your Man.” It was a dream come true for Sarah, and the two of them sounded amazing together.
Sarah recently performed at the Island Hopper Music Festival.
This isn’t her first-time attendance at the event, though. She always enjoyed attending and entertaining there. It’s also where she met Dan Spears, who works for Broadcast Music Inc. Her father, Greg, explained:
“Four years ago, at this music festival, he heard Sarah singing along to another act…they were playing Country Tradition. And he said, ‘You really have a good voice; you should learn how to play an instrument.’”
Sarah started playing the guitar.
Her parents weren’t sure she would be able to learn to play a musical instrument, but they had faith in her. Sarah learned to play the guitar, and now she plays and sings at the same time. Sarah had dreams of playing in front of singer-songwriter Kristen Kelly. She was able to do so but was nervous about her performance. She said:
“I just remember nerves, that’s all because it was the first time I played the guitar in front of more than 10 people.”
Sarah doesn’t get that nervous anymore, and she has performed at some pretty big venues and beside some big stars.
She recently performed Carrie Underwood’s hit “Before He Cheats” with country singer Craig Campbell during CMA Fest. She looked very professional standing on stage, and her voice is amazing.
Sarah’s parents are thrilled that she is living her dreams and working on becoming a famous singer. She still has a ways to go, but she has already accomplished a lot in just a few years. If she continues to work hard and overcome obstacles, she will be famous in no time.
Sarah could have let her blindness keep her from living life to the fullest.
She could have thought things were impossible and chose not to take a chance. By choosing to not let her blindness define her, she is living a much happier life. She is entertaining crowds and is a huge inspiration to other people who are blind or suffering from another disability. The sky is the limit for this young girl, and she is ready to make some big things happen.
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