Without Sarah Orren at the helm of operations and customer service, Card Isle would certainly not be what it is today. She has been with us since February 2019 and, when hired, was the only non-founder (and woman!) on our team. The past 4 years have been full of changes, challenges, and exciting developments that Sarah herself has often spearheaded. But, if you can believe it, she once wanted to be an archeologist.

That’s right - with a mind passionate about learning, Sarah dreamed of becoming an archaeologist when she was younger. She even went as far as to shadow archaeologists at the Flowerdew Hundred Plantation when she got the opportunity in high school. Life ended up not leading her in that direction, though. While working her way through college, Sarah started working in customer service at a call center and has been working in customer service, communications, and marketing for the next 15 years. In July 2022, she was promoted to Card Isle’s Director of Operations.

Previously, Sarah had held the positions of Customer Success Manager and Director of Customer Success at Card Isle. She says that the move to operations has been the biggest shift in her career journey, but being a lifelong learner, has found new enthusiasm for the task. Her passion for learning is her biggest motivator. This can be seen in Sarah’s personal life as well - she has a goal to complete her Master’s Degree sooner rather than later!

Looking forward, she wants to continue to push herself and tackle tasks with a fierce desire to comprehend whatever is thrown her way. With that mindset, Sarah has managed to already put efficiencies into place that revolutionized how Card Isle is run operationally.

Watching all of our ideas come to fruition has been so fun and interesting.

Sarah described Card Isle as innovative and culturally ambitious. She reiterated that the company culture is supportive and family-focused, which is something that is very important to her as a stepmother (or bonus mom as her wonderful step daughter Dylan calls her). When asking Sarah to describe herself she used the words persistent, loyal, and creative. We have to agree! Not only does her work at Card Isle encompass those values, but her volunteer work as President of a local non-profit dance studio truly cements them into her character.

Those same attributes seem to have been within her great-grandmother Geraldine as well. Sarah says that Geraldine is one of her biggest inspirations. She was one of the women who worked tirelessly during World War II and refused to adjust back to the status quo in post-war years. Geraldine’s tenacious spirit seems to live on in the women of her family. Consequently, when posed with the question of who in history she would most like to meet, Sarah unsurprisingly mentioned Amelia Earhart and Cleopatra - two women who were true trailblazers for their time and beyond.

Sarah lives in Christiansburg, VA with her husband Ryan, step-daughter Dylan, and two dogs Molly and Apollo.

While there is no doubt that she is a true asset to the Card Isle team, we want Sarah to know we are thankful for her hard work and dedication in whatever role she has taken on - not only on Employee Appreciation Day, but every day.