Sarah Ellington Stone

Sarah Ellington Stone was a 19-year-old woman from Blackshear, Georgia, known within the Southern Baptist community as the daughter of Pastor Mike Stone and his wife, Andrea. She spent much of her teenage years living with serious, lifelong health conditions, including neuromuscular weakness and postural orthostatic tachycardia syndrome (POTS), which gradually made breathing and physical activity difficult for her. Despite her illness, Sarah became known in church circles for her music ministry and for the openness with which her family shared updates on her condition over several years.

Her father, Mike Stone, is a prominent figure within the Southern Baptist Convention. He has served as pastor of Emmanuel Baptist Church in Blackshear, as chairman of the SBC's Executive Committee, and was a candidate for SBC president in 2021. Through his public platform, he and his wife Andrea regularly shared updates about Sarah's health struggles, which drew a wide following of supporters who prayed for the family over the years. Sarah was the second youngest of the couple's four children.

On her 19th birthday, two months before her death, the Stone family announced the creation of the SonShine Foundation, an effort Sarah wanted to support international missions work and families of children living with chronic illness. The foundation reflected what those close to her described as her desire to turn her own suffering into something that would help others, a theme that ran through the messages she posted publicly during her illness, including her reflection that a true miracle might be faith and contentment rather than physical healing.

In August 2026, Mike Stone told followers that Sarah had entered hospice care at the family's home after years of fighting her illnesses. She remained in hospice for about 12 weeks, longer than her family and medical team had expected. Sarah Ellington Stone died on Tuesday, November 3, 2026, at her family's home in Blackshear, Georgia, at the age of 19.

Her death was announced by her father on social media in a statement that combined grief with the family's Christian faith, quoting the biblical passage, "The Lord gave. The Lord has taken away. Blessed be the name of the Lord." The announcement drew an outpouring of condolences from across the Southern Baptist community and beyond, including from ministry leaders who had followed her story for years. A worship service celebrating her life and her music ministry is scheduled for Sunday, November 8, at Emmanuel Baptist Church in Blackshear.