Zipster Profile: Newlyweds Rachel and Sarah
Meet members Rachel Fichtenbaum and Sarah Langer, who have been Zipsters for ten-plus years. When they got married last year they sent us some love on Twitter, showing us how they rely on Zipcar in their everyday life — and on one of the biggest days of their lives. We sat down with them to chat about city life, their recent wedding, and how they use Zipcar to keep moving.
Newlywed’s Rachel (left) and Sarah (right) tell us their story on driving equality forward.
How did you meet?
Sarah: Through a mutual friend who organized a pick-up basketball league for short people in Boston.
Rachel: We each played basketball, but not at the same time. Luckily, we later met at a Rosh Hashanah dinner at our friend’s house.
What’s your favorite part about living in the city?
Rachel: I love being able to get to places easily. Lots of my favorite locations—coffee shops, farmers’ market, bookstores—are right in our neighborhood or in walking distance. Plus there’s so much that’s just an easy T ride away. And for other places, there are so many options, including Zipcar!
Sarah: All the people! And being able to walk or bike lots of places.
What do you do for work?
Rachel: I work in Massachusetts on a statewide transportation initiative helping organizations better serve older adults and people with disabilities.
Sarah: I work for a program of the Boston Public Schools, coaching math teachers and helping student teachers learn to teach math.
What’s your favorite thing about each other?
Rachel: One thing I think we both enjoy is that we support each other at serious times, but we also really enjoy being silly together. I really appreciate Sarah’s sense of humor.
Sarah: Rachel is very thoughtful about social justice. I feel like I’ve learned a lot from her about how to be a better person. We share a lot of values and care about the same things.
When did you both become Zipcar members?
Sarah: I joined back in 2007, when I first moved to Boston.
Rachel: I used to live in Philadelphia and used a local car-share company there. When I moved to Somerville in 2009, I had a car for a few years. Then I joined Zipcar and got rid of my car. Now we have a shared account, which is convenient when we get a car together for a shared trip.
How do you use Zipcar in your daily life?
Rachel: I use it to visit my parents in the suburbs or my great aunt in Rhode Island. I sometimes use it for work, too, because I work statewide. Sometimes, I can take the train or bus to a meeting, but when I work in rural areas I usually drive.
Sarah: If I have a day where I’m running a workshop I’ll reserve it for the day, or to go see my parents during the holidays.
Can you tell us about the role Zipcar played at your wedding?
Rachel: We got married at the Armory in Somerville, which is just a 20-minute walk from where we live. For the actual wedding, we knew there would be a lot of stuff to carry over, so we reserved a nearby Zipcar for the weekend. We drove over to the wedding on Saturday, and then on Sunday we drove up to Sarah’s parents’ house in Gloucester to spend time with family and out-of-town guests.
Sarah: And it just so happened that the Zipcar closest to us was named “Bridesmaids!”
Do you have a message that you’d like to share with your fellow Zipcar members during Pride month?
Rachel: Happy Pride! This Pride season, I’m thinking a lot about preserving our access to public accommodations in Massachusetts. Right now, it’s illegal for venues to discriminate against those of us who are trans or gender non-conforming in public spaces—like the spaces where Pride events happen, or a lot of the places we all use Zipcars to drive to—but that’s up for a vote in November.
Sarah: So enjoy Pride, and come November vote yes to preserve LGBTQ rights! And thanks to the Freedom for All Massachusetts coalition for getting the word out about this important issue.
