Photo submitted St. Marys native Sarah Timm, center, recently appeared in an episode of reality television show The Bank of Mom & Dad along with her mother, Sheri, left, and father, Robert, right.

By Becky Polaski

Staff Writer

St. Marys native Sarah Timm recently was the focus of reality television show The Bank of Mom and Dad, which airs on SOAPnet. Timm’s episode of the show was broadcast on Wednesday night at 10 p.m. and will be rerun tonight and Sunday at 10 p.m. 

Timm first heard about the television show through an online casting call.

“There was a casting call online for a reality show about young women with credit card debt,” Timm said. “I applied and didn’t really expect to get cast. I apply online to casting calls for shows, commercials, and photo shoots all the time and barely get called. Luckily, this one was real and I was accepted.”

After being selected for the show, Timm found out that her parents, Robert and Sheri Timm, had to commit to participate as well.

“I  asked them to do it, and they were a little skeptical, but wanted to support me. It wasn’t too tough to convince them,” Timm said. “They like performing, so I told them to treat it as a performance, as if they are playing a role, even though the show is reality.”

According to Timm, The Bank of Mom & Dad features young women in their 20s and 30s who are dealing with debt from credit cards and student loans.

“The parents of the daughter in debt move in with her for a few days to police her spending habits,” Timm said. “They also bring in a money coach, Farnoosh Torabi, who helps the daughter set a budget and givers her financial advice and tips. The daughter also has challenges she must face throughout the week which help her to conquer her debt.”

Timm added that it was fun and interesting to watch a television show come together.

“I really enjoyed observing how the production team worked together to film a real television show,” Timm said. “I am an actress, so I enjoyed taking in as much knowledge as I could about the workings of television production. I tried to learn new terms and phrases, like OTF interviews (On The Fly interviews) and the ‘boom’ mic.”

Along with the fun elements of being in a television show, Timm noted that there were many challenges as well, adding that it was particularly unnerving to reveal some of the facts about her debt.

“I knew it was something I had to come to terms with in order to get help,” Timm said. “The main reason for doing the show was not to ‘become famous’ or ‘to be on television.’ It was seriously to learn about finances. It is daunting to face your debt crisis, so I thought this would be a fun way to do it. Besides, I knew it would cause me to work even harder to get out of debt fast because now potentially the ‘whole world’ knows about my situation. Now I have to prove to every viewer out there than I can do it.”

She also had the added challenge of representing the world of Miss America pageant girls.

“These girls are known for their intelligence, talent, and professionalism,” Timm said. “I was nervous to reveal my debt because it can either make me look like a failure or it can make me look like someone who is brave enough to tackle a problem that so many other young women face. I would hope that the pageant worlds sees this as a ‘platform’: an issue I am representing and taking a stand for. I had to be bold enough to delve into my debt and share it with the world. I want other girls to find common ground with at least one aspect of my story so they can learn from my experiences, good and bad.”

Though Timm did not see the finished episode prior to its initial broadcast on Wednesday night, she added that she does not regret participating in the show.

“The show was very emotionally draining, but I learned so much about production, finances, and myself. I had such a neat experience,” Timm said.

Timm is a graduate of St. Marys Area High School and a 2007 graduate of Westminster College with a degree in Music Education. She is employed as a full-time professional actress with Sight & Sound Theatres in Lancaster.

“I set out to pursue teaching, but decided to do what I love most: performing,” Timm said. “I hope to get back into teaching someday, but I have to take advantage of theatre opportunities while I’m still young.”