Our Team

Sarah Kate hails from the small town of Sharps Chapel, Tennessee where she cultivated her passion for Appalachian Folk Music. Sarah Kate chased this passion all the way to Morehead State University and got a degree in Traditional Music with a minor Appalachian Studies. After achieving her education, Sarah Kate settled down here in Hindman with her true love: Dolly Purrton, her overly-affectionate kitten.

Sarah Kate found her way to Hindman because she felt that the work here existed in a perfect intersection of building community, preserving Appalachian art, and investing in the future generations of the mountains. She feels that the instruction she delivers offers an opportunity for Appalachians to become more creative, communicate their feelings, and become more balanced individuals.

When Sarah Kate isn’t changing the lives of Appalachian youth, she’s baking bread and blasting Dolly Parton in her apartment. When she gets her fill of indoor life, Sarah Kate can be found wandering the woods behind the Katherine Pettit apartments, enjoying all the natural beauty Hindman has to offer. Sarah Kate has many hobbies like figuring out what makes people tick and helping people reach their full potential, but one that outranks all others is her passion for square dancing; there’s nothing that Sarah Kate loves more than stepping and swinging with the best of them.