Angela Sparks: Living By Example

There seems to be no problem too big for Angela Sparks to tackle. In fact, seeking to address problems in the community and be an “agent of change” is what energizes her, and has led to countless lives being touched by her above-and-beyond generosity and neighborly spirit.

Sparks, a Los Lunas resident, was nominated as an Unsung Hero by Larry Padilla, who met Angela through coaching the Los Lunas High School cross country team.

“Mrs. Sparks attends church, but never preaches. I know that she lives by example. If anyone walks the walk, she does,” Padilla wrote in his nomination letter.

Sparks, a mother of six, has a master’s degree in social work, which she has utilized through several different roles throughout her life. Currently, she wears a number of hats as a homemaker, seamstress, gardener, DIY extraordinaire and a baker with her own cake business. She is also cherished in the community for her home-schooling and tutoring, which she does out of her home.

Originally, she was home-schooling and tutoring just her own children, but after noticing the need in the community, she opened it up to other students as Sparks Homestead Christian Academy.

“Just by word of mouth, people find me … so I started tutoring and then that morphed into, ‘My child really needs more than just a tutor, will you teach my child?’ So, in 2016, I opened what we call a cottage school, right alongside my kids,” said Sparks.

“The way my day goes is I do day care from (6 a.m to 6 p.m.), then at 8 o’clock in the morning school starts, and we do school 8 to 3, and then I have a break, usually 3-4, and then I tutor students four nights a week from 4-6 (p.m.),” she said.

Sparks is passionate about home-schooling and ensuring that everyone she teaches has an engaging, robust education and has the same opportunities that students attending a public school would have.

“It amazes people that it happens, but I get paid for all that — it’s my job,” said Sparks. “But beyond that, I know that there are so many kids that need assistance, so what I really want to do is start a free community tutoring program.”

Sparks said her vision is to host tutoring sessions at schools where community members could volunteer their time and abilities to help tutor students. While there are obstacles to overcome to achieve this, she ‘has some feelers’ out in the community to try and make it a reality.

“I mean, really and truly, people need to evaluate what they can do with what they have and what gifts they have, because everybody has something,” she said.

When she is not teaching or tutoring, Sparks also volunteers with coach Padilla’s cross county team as their treasurer, and with Scout Troop 85 at Kirtland Air Force Base despite her kids not being involved with either anymore, but that is where she enjoys volunteering her time.

Sparks has also served as a Girl Scout leader for many years and has long been involved with Boy Scouts in various capacities. Currently, she is a merit badge counselor and committee member for Troop 85 and she helps the troop coordinate outdoor activities.

Something Sparks is also passionate about is being there for the elderly or anyone else who is in need of a support system or helping hand, often cooking them meals and helping them with their house and yard work. Through this, she and her family have brought valuable company to many and have formed numerous friendships.

“You never know who’s going to be around our table,” she said.

For example, through her daughter’s involvement in Girl Scouts, Sparks met a woman at a nursing home who she knew could use some company.

“She would openly tell stories about how her family had left her there, and the staff would confirm, ‘Yes, she has nobody’,” recalled Sparks. “But she had some giddy up and go, so I asked, ‘Can somebody who’s a non-family member take her out to go do things?’”

Through this, Sparks invited her to several outings, from taking her to get her first pedicure, to a family night hike.

“On the hike, she just opened up with all the things she knew and shared stories from when she was a girl, and she came alive like I’d never seen her before,” said Sparks. “Having nowhere to go, she came to our house for Thanksgiving. It’s that kind of community that I hope one day is there for me. “

That idea of community is what motivates Sparks everyday, and she wants to keep it alive because people need one another, and that tight-knit sense of community is becoming less common.

Sparks holds this sense of community-mindedness wherever she goes. An example is when she was at the store one day and she saw a man looking for basil. She directed him toward it, and they marveled at the cost together. Having a surplus of basil at home, Sparks invited him to come get some, which he did.

“I start out a lot of conversations in the community like this. I said, ‘Look, I’m not a weirdo, but here’s my address,’” Sparks said with a chuckle. “Sometimes I look at a situation and I think, ‘If not me, then who?ʼ You’re taking a walk, and there’s trash on the ground. I could walk past it, but if I don’t pick it up, who else?ʼ”

Sparks hopes people will consider making time to invest in their community and become part of the solution.

“Everybody can’t do it all, but everybody has that group (they care about), so choose who you’re going to serve,” said Sparks.

“Words alone cannot explain the admiration I have for this woman,” Padilla wrote in the conclusion of his nomination letter. “I have never known anyone who has done more for her community without ignoring her family. She makes everyone feel special.”