GRACE has some amazing staff members who are graduating this year from various leadership programs across our community, and we want to highlight their astonishing accomplishments! Grant Writer, Kristina Davis, Operations Manager, LaMon Walker, and Food Pantry Manager, Marcus Miranda, are all graduating from Leadership Grapevine. Leadership Grapevine is a program of the city of Grapevine and the Grapevine Chamber of Commerce that offers an educational experience designed to develop an awareness of the city, its relationship with the DFW Metroplex and to provide personal leadership training. This year’s class included 30 individuals who had the opportunity to experience the behind the scenes look of the city of Grapevine. From visiting the Gaylord to speaking with the City Manager, these individuals learned much from this nine-month program. “Leadership Grapevine was a unique experience,” said Kristina. “I got to see the behind-the-scenes operations of, what I think, is the best city

Colleyville Woman’s Club (CWC) is a dedicated group of DFW residents who improve the community through volunteer service and charitable fundraising, all while enjoying new friendships. Membership is open to everyone and generally has included men and women from Colleyville and the surrounding areas. In addition to community volunteers, many area professionals with limited time join and volunteer their unique skills for special events, taking advantage of valuable networking opportunities while giving back to their communities. Charitable grants, scholarships and service projects are only a few of the many ways CWC programs and member volunteers assist its neighbors in need. The CWC has stood alongside GRACE for 20 years now, dedicating their time to every branch of the organization. They have volunteered in various ways, from our summer program Feed Our Kids to the much anticipated Christmas Cottage. To celebrate their 24th anniversary, the organization hosted their annual Caring with

The Pearls of Sisterhood & Service is an official interest group of Alpha Kappa Alpha Sorority. Their mission is to serve the communities of Hurst, Euless, Bedford, Grapevine and Southlake while also putting their three motives into place, which are to cultivate leaders amongst their members, establish key strategic community and business partnerships to help support, grow and sustain our reach and impact in Northeast County, and to engage more members to join in the efforts of Sisterhood And Service. The Pearls of Sisterhood heard of the GRACE Feed Our Kids program and wanted to learn more about the event. After reaching out to one of our GRACE staff members, the Pearls of Sisterhood invited GRACE staff to their Chartering luncheon. At the luncheon, the organization announced their official decision to volunteer for the GRACE’s Feed Our Kids program, expressing how excited they were to dive into such an amazing

It takes a village to help plan the annual GRACE Gala. Volunteers, committee members, and GRACE staff alike work endlessly to make sure Gala is the best event in town. Soon, we will be kicking off Gala season with the first committee meeting the last week of May. A fun fact for our readers – the GRACE Gala takes approximately 365 days to plan and execute. Many different activities go into this amazing production which makes the Gala even more fun and exciting for everyone to enjoy. All of this and more starts with our hardworking and dedicated committee chairs and members. Sheila and Jason Ridley make up this year’s Gala committee chairs. The Ridleys have been supporters of GRACE for years and have chosen this year to give the community a very special GRACE Gala. Along with the Ridleys, our committee members play another huge part in the Gala

Food banks and pantries play a key role in supporting food security and contribute greatly to the dietary intake of families and individuals in all communities. Donations are critical in pantries having the ability to meet the needs of the people they serve! In recent years, there has been an increased focus on sourcing and supplying nutritional foods within the charitable food system. GRACE has already taken the first step in working toward offering a variety of options for our clients by using the client-choice service model that allows our clients to hand select food they know their family will eat. The GRACE Pantry is fortunate to have donations from many sources contributing to the overall availability of food including individual donations, corporate/organizational donations, local grocery and retail stores, and the Tarrant Area Food Bank. Healthy food choices are always a focus of GRACE. The Pantry works alongside our GRACE

Summer is near, which means one thing: the GRACE Feed Our Kids program is almost here! We are so excited about this year’s program, because we know many children will be able to grab a good bite to eat for lunch – and it’s all possible through the help of our wonderful volunteers. The GRACE Feed Our Kids is a spring and summer program started in 2005 which provides lunches for children across the community at designated sites close to their homes. Most of the children qualify for reduced or free lunches at during the school year. Lunches are served by many individuals, civic groups, clubs, and organizations in the community. This week was the Feed Our Kids Kickoff meeting. GRACE staff spoke about the success of this year’s spring break Feed Our Kids and how it generated a lot of buzz around the community, which is always great especially

With over 400 attendees, many fabulous designer bags and enough delicious food to go around, we can positively say that the second annual Designer Bags & Bingo benefiting Transitional Housing was a success. Sam’s Pack Five Star Subaru of Grapevine once again hosted this wonderful event. From the moment guests entered the building, they were greeted by the handsome Bingo Gents, who would then escort them to the registration table. As you walk towards the back of the venue where the game was held, you were met with many activities to participate in, such as a selfie wall and a pie, prosecco and purse pull. All of that was just a start to all of the fun and friendly competition that was in store. Event Co-Chair, Lynda Warner and CEO, Shonda Schaefer opened up the event by recognizing our presenting sponsor, Trusted Results Realty, and a heartwarming video of the GRACE

The annual GRACE Staff Retreat is a cherished day of fellowship, personal growth and this year – some friendly competition. With rest and reflection as the focus, the goal of the day was to build community with each other, highlight individual strengths and provide visual reminders of how each staff member’s role plays a vital part in providing a continuum of care to each of our clients. Staff members spent the day doing a variety of activities ranging from therapeutic crafts to a full-blown scavenger hunt. We began our morning with a visit from The House of Shine who helped each staff member reflect on what made them their strongest, most successful version of themselves so they could better shine their light in the community. House of Shine provided several creative ways to recognize our individual strengths and encourage others in the process. After lunch, the GRACE staff took to

The GRACE Food Pantry does an incredible job at making sure our clients get the right food and necessities to take home to their families. That is why we are so honored to receive this year’s Pounds per Family award from Tarrant Area Food Bank. Last week the Tarrant Area Food Bank hosted a Partner Agency conference at the Met Church in Fort Worth. The conference was attended by many food banks and pantries across Tarrant County including GRACE. The theme of the conference was “Convene, Connect and Engage”, and it highlighted capacity building throughout many food banks throughout Tarrant County. The conference also presented strong tips that each agency could use to modernize their programs. During the awards portion of the conference, Community Impact’s Vice President, Vicky Martinez, presented GRACE with the award of distributing the Most Pounds per Family in Tarrant County. “The GRACE Food Pantry is always

If you are a first time Designer Bags & Bingo guest, you’re probably wondering what the afternoon has in store! Aside from a great time with friends, we can promise you a few more things. When you enter the venue doors Sunday afternoon, you will be greeted with a glass of champagne and a fun surprise to pair with it. For those looking to keep their head in the game, non-alcoholic beverages will be available down the hall and throughout the afternoon’s activities. Small bites, compliments of Ted Bilsky at Scratch Kitchen, await guests in the bingo room. Before you make your way to your table, however, make sure you stop by and get a photo with your friends or family! Selph Marketing has provided a fabulous photo booth that is just waiting for your most goofy, serious and even embarrassing photos (depending on what mood you’re in)! There will