Stacey Sapp Co-Founder & Vice President
Stacey Sapp is the Founder and Vice President of Breaking Barrs, a faith-based organization committed to restoring hope, dignity, and purpose to individuals and families impacted by substance use disorder, incarceration, and generational trauma.
Stacey’s work is deeply rooted in lived experience. She has personally battled substance use disorder, navigated the weight of legal challenges and incarceration, and understands firsthand the barriers individuals face when attempting to rebuild their lives. In addition to her own recovery journey, Stacey has endured profound personal loss, including the death of a child, the destruction of her family home by fire, and the devastating loss of close friends to overdose. These cumulative traumas shaped not only her resilience, but her unwavering commitment to ensuring others do not walk these paths alone.
Through recovery, faith, and perseverance, Stacey transformed adversity into purpose. Grounded in her belief that God restores what is broken, she draws strength from the promise that “The Lord is close to the brokenhearted and saves those who are crushed in spirit” (Psalm 34:18). This truth became the cornerstone of Breaking Barrs.
Stacey’s journey also includes significant academic and professional achievement. She has pursued advanced education in healthcare, earning recognition for academic excellence and membership in Phi Theta Kappa, the international honor society for high-achieving college students. Her background in healthcare strengthens her commitment to evidence-informed, trauma-responsive care and reinforces her belief that recovery must address the whole person—mind, body, and spirit.
Breaking Barrs was founded to serve individuals often overlooked or dismissed by traditional systems—those impacted by addiction, justice involvement, trauma, and family separation. Stacey leads with the conviction that people are not defined by their worst moments, but by their capacity for transformation. “Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, they are a new creation; the old has gone, the new has come” (2 Corinthians 5:17).
Under Stacey’s leadership, Breaking Barrs integrates faith-based encouragement with practical support services, including peer mentorship, reentry navigation, recovery stabilization, and community partnership. The organization emphasizes accountability, personal responsibility, and compassion—creating pathways from crisis to stability.
Stacey is especially passionate about breaking cycles of addiction and incarceration by addressing root causes such as trauma, hopelessness, and lack of support. She believes that restoration is possible even after profound loss, trusting that “God works all things together for good” (Romans 8:28). Through Breaking Barrs, she continues to advocate for healing, family reunification, and second chances—helping individuals move from survival to stability, and from despair to purpose.