School’s out, and you know what that means – endless volunteer opportunities all summer long! This is a great way for you to serve your community during the season. Read on to find out how you can be involved! You don’t want to miss out. The GRACE Feed Our Kids (FOK) Program is a seasonal lunch program led by Seasonal Programs Coordinator, Beth Chernik. FOK provides lunches to local children who may rely on school to provide their midday meal, and therefore face having to go without it when school is not in session. So, how can you help? Volunteer to provide these children with a good meal, warm smiles, and a welcoming atmosphere! There is plenty of room for creativity, with many volunteers providing arts and crafts materials, sports equipment, or music for the perfect lunchtime dance break. Children not only receive a good lunch, but are able to

Each quarter, GRACE Staff takes time to recognize their coworkers for the way they present and carry out the GRACE Mission to our clients, our donors, and each other. These moments of recognition come in the form of nominations for the Mission Vision Practice (MVP) Award. This quarter’s winner is Lakissia (Kissy) Walker who works at Donation Station! Kissy’s coworker submitted the following nomination: “I cannot say enough about the customer service that I hear from this person, especially on the phone with donors, she is exceptional! When I interact with Kissy her attitude is always positive, she had an eye for great donations big or small that come through GRACE Drive. She is a great team player. We both agree on our Mission at GRACE, ‘to be a good steward’. I am grateful to know and work with her.” Congratulations Kissy, your encouragement and positive outlook are second to

Yesterday, we announced Stacy Pacholick, GRACE’s chief program officer, as our Interim Executive Director. We are thrilled to welcome Stacy in this new role and look forward to her continued positive impact on the GRACE community. Stacy has served GRACE for a decade. Starting as Director of Programs, she has grown to oversee all of GRACE’s programming, including Client Services, Clinic, Food Pantry, Transitional Housing, and the Friends & Family program as well as seasonal events like Feed Our Kids and the Christmas Cottage. Her background with other social services programs such as The Parenting Center in Fort Worth and The Salvation Army in Kansas City underscore Stacy’s deep expertise and passion for serving her community. Stacy has been celebrated by her peers for providing stellar customer service and cultivating a positive atmosphere for the GRACE team. We are looking forward to another successful summer for GRACE Programs!    

Over the past few months, GRACE has been seeing a significant increase in clients coming in for food assistance, and due to this and many of the Pantry staples running low, The GRACE Food Pantry needs your urgent help! The Food Pantry is open from Mondays-Friday from 9 am- 5 pm. During this time GRACE Clients are able to come inside the pantry and shop for groceries like they would at a normal grocery store. Most of the items that clients shop for are donated by individuals, families, and civic, church, and business groups. Food drives and visits to your local grocery store are great ways to give back to the GRACE Food Pantry. Click here to view, print, and share our most recently updated Food Pantry Needs. You can also shop online for our Food Pantry with the help of our Food Pantry Amazon List located here. Any item

The month of May was a very busy and exciting month for the GRACE Clients at Transitional Housing. Early in the month, they were greeted by a surprise, but very familiar guest in the Community. The Grapevine Fire Department arrived at the scene, not for an emergency, but to talk about fire safety. GRACE Clients learned about new ways to keep their homes safe and how to prevent kitchen fires. They also received great information on what to do in case of a tornado and other types of inclement weather. Everyone had a chance to see the hard work and dedication that the Grapevine Fire Department gives to the community and how they are just as nice they are on and off the job. If you ask the children of our clients, they would tell you that the best part for them was “climbing and playing in the big fire

Today is bittersweet. After more than 16 years at the helm of GRACE, Shonda Schaefer has stepped down as CEO. Her wise leadership earned GRACE a reputation for compassion, excellence and effectiveness. Shonda’s advocacy for those we serve attracted many generous and faithful friends who have shared their time, resources and dedication to advance GRACE’s mission.To support this transition, the GRACE Board of Directors is pleased to announce Stacy Pacholick as Interim Executive Director. Stacy’s decade of experience as GRACE’s Chief Program Officer makes her a strong and informed leader. Her commitment to the GRACE family and community is unwavering and we are confident she will gracefully shepherd the organization into its newest chapter. Under Shonda’s leadership, GRACE has become known as a place where those with personal crises and health challenges can come for physical, financial and emotional healing. On behalf of the entire GRACE team, we thank Shonda for

In honor of the Memorial Day holiday, all administrative and program sites will be closing at 3:00 p.m. Friday, and reopening Tuesday at 9:00 a.m. The hours will be as follows: Friday, May 26th: 9:00 am – 3:00 pm Monday, May 29th: CLOSED Tuesday, May 30th: 9:00 am – 5:00 pm If you have an emergency that cannot wait until normal operating hours, please contact Client Services at 817-602-1204. We apologize for any inconvenience this may cause. Have a blessed weekend!

The story is quickly becoming legend. In 2002, a single location with a compelling concept—a counter service restaurant specializing in [very] flavorful chicken wings—carved a niche in the Dallas sports and entertainment scene. In the same hometown as legends like Brinker and Romano, Brent Tipps did them one better: he actually founded and built his BoomerJack’s empire right here in the DFW area. To-date, in just over twenty years, Brent has developed 16 restaurants, along with an upscale lounge, Sidecar Social in Addison, and a live-music venue, the Bedford Ice House. Now he’s taking the exciting BoomerJack’s experience down the road with two locations going up in Houston. Brent was named the 2017 Entrepreneur of Excellence by Fort Worth Magazine, and with over 2,000 employees, his company has been named a Top 100 Place to work by the Dallas Morning News four times. “From the beginning,” said Brent, “taking care

Every summer, GRACE assists families in need of school supplies via our Back to School Program. Over the last few years, GRACE on average has served about 300 children with a new backpack and school supplies; however, this year we anticipate these numbers will increase due to ongoing financial hardships related to the increased cost of food and rent. GRACE is preparing to serve those families who could use this assistance and would greatly appreciate the support of the community to accomplish this task. Our primary need is backpacks filled with school supplies for elementary and middle school-aged children, but a comprehensive list can be found here. For more information, please reach out to Emily Miranda, emiranda@gracegrapevine.org Donations can be dropped off at GRACE’s Main Campus located at: 837 E. Walnut St Grapevine, TX 76051 From 9:00 AM to 5:00 PM, Monday- Friday

GRACE was honored to celebrate the staff of Five Star Subaru of Grapevine on Tuesday, May 16th and their efforts in the ‘Share the Love’ campaign!  Tony Pack and staff from Five Star Subaru of Grapevine and Subaru Corporate presented a check to GRACE staff and Board Members at the gathering to show appreciation for the generous collaboration! The dealership hosted its annual Share the Love Event benefiting GRACE over the holiday months. Each year, Five-Star Subaru donates a portion of every new Subaru purchased or leased to charitable organizations of the shopper’s choosing. Subaru’s Share the Love has provided over $256 million to national non-profit organizations for each of the approximate 680 Subaru dealerships around the U.S. The Grapevine location alone donated over $495,000 to organizations in the community. GRACE is incredibly thankful for the generous efforts and contributions of Subaru and Five Star Subaru of Grapevine for hosting