Sarah Ann Hardy was born in Randleman, North Carolina, in 1947. She grew up with her mother, father, and four siblings: one sister and three brothers. Her father was sharecropper and brick mason, who built homes, and her mother was a domestic worker. Though Ms. Hardy attended segregated schools in Randleman, schools were integrated after she graduated from high school in 1965 and her younger siblings attended the newly integrated white school. After graduating, Ms. Hardy enrolled in Southeastern Business College but soon returned home and enrolled at North Carolina Agricultural and Technical State University, which she attended from 1965-1966. In 1966, at age 19, Ms. Hardy was visited her cousin in Washington, D.C., and enjoyed her visit so much that she decided not to return home. She quickly found work in the federal government and worked within the same agency for 42 years. In 2008, at age 61, Ms. Hardy retired from her job and moved back to North Carolina to tend to her mother who had taken ill. Ms. Hardy currently lives in Greensboro but continues to visit Washington, D.C., frequently.