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Sarah Lima, 24, co-founded Téia Candle Co., Jewelry and Home Décor after graduating from Harper College's Career Skills Institute. Her business now ships products worldwide.
Sarah Lima beams with pride as she shares the story of her business – and for good reason.
The Barrington resident, 24, co-owns Téia Candle Co., Jewelry and Home Décor, which sells organic, soy-wax candles and handmade jewelry in the northwest suburbs (and worldwide via www.teia.online). Sarah became an entrepreneur not long after graduating from Harper College’s Career Skills Institute and many years after doctors determined she had a cognitive disability.
“Sarah was diagnosed with a cognitive disorder when she was around three,” said Sarah’s father Leon. “And when she was in first grade, she received extra support in special education classes at Barrington’s Roslyn Road Elementary School.”
The family shared that Sarah’s disorder impacts higher level problem-solving and verbal reasoning skills. As a result, Sarah’s mother Ester was intent on creating a supportive environment for her daughter and emphasized the benefits of a healthy routine. Meanwhile, Sarah thrived in her school life, taking advanced courses and joining various art programs.
“She was always over the top in respect and kindness, and made lots of friends in ballet, theatre and the choir,” Ester said. “We call it a kind of miracle that we were able to keep her life as normal as possible. We are amazed at how far she’s come and how proactive she is.”
Around the time Sarah was graduating from Barrington High School, the Lima family cared deeply that their daughter should receive a genuine college experience.
“A lot of her friends were moving on in life, and we wanted Sarah to have the same opportunity,” Ester said. Leon agreed: “It seemed important for her confidence and to build responsibility.”
The family learned about Harper’s two-year Career Skills Institute program, which is designed for adults with mild intellectual disabilities. It didn’t hurt that Ester is a Harper alum, having learned English via Harper courses after she and Leon immigrated from Brazil more than 30 years ago.
The Lima family agreed that CSI would be a good fit for Sarah, who enrolled in the program in the fall of 2018.
Ester (from left), Sarah and Leon Lima credit Harper College's CSI program, designed for adults with mild intellectual disabilities, with helping Sarah on her way to becoming an entrepreneur.
The Career Skills Institute at Harper College consists of four sequential semesters, with courses ranging from reading, writing and math to learning about workplace communication, career exploration and enhancing workplace-focused life skills. The CSI program helps students with diverse learning disabilities gain basic academic and employability skills. The curriculum culminates in an internship opportunity on campus in the fourth semester to provide students with skills training at a work location that matches their strengths and capabilities.
CSI Program Coordinator Eric Wiebe is delighted with Sarah’s success and shared his insights into CSI’s overarching goals for the students involved.
“We’re more than just building skills towards getting a job,” Eric said. “We work on helping students discover their unique strengths, learn how to advocate for themselves and build strategies to become more independent. We see this is critical to having greater success in the workplace and in life.”
The CSI program is designed to accommodate students with diverse needs. In light of this, Eric emphasized the importance of being part of a college campus and the number of social opportunities for students who come through the program.
“There’s a reason we give our students 90 minutes for lunch,” Eric said. “Our students are integral members of the Harper College community. This extra time on campus allows them to attend events, seek out unique college experiences and to practice their social skills as they interact with all students on the Harper campus. They also have the opportunity to join one of over 50 unique clubs.”
Sarah made lasting friendships at Harper, one of the benefits she mentions when talking about the CSI program. Other highlights included her science and math classes, along with career discussions near the program’s end. Those conversations were a big milestone in her entrepreneurial journey.
“We talked about the pros and cons of starting a business, and if I wanted to get a job or work remotely,” Sarah recalled. “Eventually, I decided I wanted to have my family’s support at home.”
In the winter of 2020, with her father’s help, Sarah started researching candle making online. After lots of trial and error, the father-daughter duo began crafting high-quality, organic, soy-wax candles with scent collections to match each season.
Sarah was in charge of the naming process, coming up with titles like Route 66 and
Someone Famous – which sold out almost immediately.
Soon after, Sarah’s mother leveraged some of her own artistic talents, designing intricate jewelry pieces fashioned from golden grass, a unique Brazilian plant with a golden shimmer. When the family decided to use golden grass designs for customizable candle vessels, the business took off and was branded Téia Candle Co.
“Some of Sarah’s first customers were family members and friends she made at CSI,” Ester said. She was happy to share that Sarah’s Harper classmates still keep in touch and visit the Téia booth locations at the Painted Tree in Kildeer, Bloomingdale and Naperville.
Sarah’s business has now made sales across the globe, and her story inspires customers who run into Sarah when she represents Téia Candle Co. at various art festivals and marketing events the family attends.
“She gets excited every time she gets to see how many new sales we’ve made,” Leon said. “And she gets to handle a lot of the data entry, which was an activity she found out she really enjoyed during her time at CSI.”
When Sarah considers what improved the most for her during the CSI program, she responded with a big smile: “I would say my social skills, because… before I didn’t really talk too much.”
Now, who knows where her creativity may take her? Sarah shared other business interests, including opening a boba tea shop, which would also sell her homemade candles, and allow her to apply her baking skills, a favorite pastime.
It’s certain that her family will be with her every step of the way. Leon and Ester expressed their appreciation for Harper and the experiences that the CSI program opened up for their daughter.
“I’m looking back at how life comes full circle,” Ester said. “I came from Brazil in my 20s, over 30 years ago, and attended Harper in order to transition into my adult life. Sarah now can say, with great gratitude, that in her 20s Harper helped her transition into adult life also.”