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A flower is used to symbolize a film project that was salvaged by the late filmmaker's wife

Sarah Potter and her two children.
Provided by Sarah Potter
Sarah Potter and her two children.

UPDATE: The Kickstarter campaign reached its goal on Friday 3/18/22.

A Naperville woman changed her life’s focus to keep her late husband’s dream alive.

Sarah Potter is a film producer, but this isn’t something she always did. Potter was a speech pathologist for Northern Illinois University for about five years. After that she did this for other educational institutions. Her husband Scott was the film producer in the family.

Potter said before the pandemic, Scott participated in a storytelling event called the People Tree in Naperville. The chair of public health at Benedictine University was there. She listened to Scott’s story and found out he worked in the film industry.

“And so, she approached him after and just said, ‘Hey, I have this story that I really think needs to be told. And I think film would be the perfect way to do it.’ And she proceeded just to tell him about AFM,” Potter explained.

AFM stands for acute flaccid myelitis. This is a rare neurologic childhood disease that effects what’s called the gray matter in the spinal cord. Some people say it’s like polio. Potter remembered her husband’s excitement for the project.

“And so, from there, he just started researching what AFM was, connecting with some of the top medical professionals, meeting with some of the families,” she shared. “And right at the end, he had filmed a family and interviewed them out in California to be part of the film.”

The “end” Potter mentioned indicates the beginning of Scott’s own struggle. In November of 2019, he became very ill. He ended up in the hospital and was diagnosed with pancreatitis. He came home on March 13th that following year but was still very sick and had to be hooked up to an IV. Potter said he was starting to recover but kept having setbacks. He had another surgery, got an infection and things went downhill. The disease took over and Scott died leaving behind his wife and two children, who are now 3 and 7.

Potter explained that during Scott’s hospital stay he mentioned that he wanted to get a tattoo. Potter decided that she wanted to get one too. She said she thought about the lotus flower for hers.

“And the Lotus was something that symbolizes -- really across cultures and religions -- that even in the darkest of times, during the muddiest of water, something beautiful can grow.” she said.

Potter got the flower printed on her arm a month after her husband’s death.

Potter said she wanted to carry her spouse’s film to completion and this flower became a symbol of that. So, she incorporated it in the name of the film. That’s how she came up with the title, “When the Lotus Blooms: A Story of Acute Survival.”

Potter had no intention of being a part of the filmmaking process. She reached out to Scott’s colleagues to do the job, but they had something else in mind.

They told her that they wanted her to learn filmmaking so she could be a part of the production. She was not a fan of that idea and declined the offer.

But after a while, her support system convinced her to give in and take the plunge. Scott’s peers took her under their wings and offered her an internship in Hawaii.

“They were just wonderful and trying to help me figure out what aspect of film production did I like? What did I feel like I could do going forward?” she added. “And even if I wanted to, they weren't trying to push me one way or the other. So having people invest in you like that is pretty remarkable.”

Potter ended her career as a speech pathologist in May of 2021.

From there she started a Kickstarter campaign to fund the film. A Kickstarter fundraiser gives the person the opportunity to set up a goal, but that amount must be made within 30 days. If it isn’t the money has to be given back.

The goal was set for one $100,000. With just a few days to go, the fund is close to $81,000.

Potter said the film will be a reminder that so many people must grapple with grief.

“But I do want to stress to people that even when the worst can happen to you, and you think that there's just nowhere to go,” she said, “there are ways forward that can help you keep going.”

The deadline for the Kickstarter goal is March 19th. Those interested in helping Potter finish the film can donate by visiting whenthelotusblooms.com.

  • Yvonne Boose is a current corps member for Report for America, an initiative of the GroundTruth Project. It's a national service program that places talented journalists in local newsrooms like WNIJ. You can learn more about Report for America at wnij.org.
Yvonne covers artistic, cultural, and spiritual expressions in the COVID-19 era. This could include how members of community cultural groups are finding creative and innovative ways to enrich their personal lives through these expressions individually and within the context of their larger communities. Boose is a recent graduate of the Illinois Media School and returns to journalism after a career in the corporate world.