For many in the community, volunteering at GRACE Donation Station is the first opportunity to help with GRACE programs. The GRACE Donation Station is a hub where the generosity of our community is directed to those in need. Donation Station is a drive thru drop –off site where all donations from the community are processed. Over the 2022-2023 year, donations have averaged over 400 cars per day! Process wise, donations are sorted first to fill client needs, then the remainder goes to stock our GRACEful Buys Stores. For this to happen, much occurs behind the scenes to sort, assess and manage the incoming donations. This work is accomplished by volunteers assisting GRACE staff. With this time of year being  peak for donations, volunteers are so needed to assist GRACE staff sort all the items. “The end of the year is our busiest time,” says Brian Matthews, GRACE Donation Station Manager.

This week, staff members from Chicken N Pickle in Grapevine showed up to volunteer their time with GRACE. The group broke up into teams to tackle multiple projects across our various sites, and made a huge difference! Featuring lawn games, fresh food, and of course, pickleball, it’s no wonder Chicken N pickle has become increasingly popular since opening. Perhaps the best thing about them is their dedication and commitment to giving back locally. It’s part of the culture at Chicken N Pickle – “Our Hearts Are Local,” is their motto when it comes to community engagement. That’s how 100 – yes, 100! – staff members wound up serving GRACE this past Tuesday. Volunteers worked on landscaping around the main office, helping at our GRACE-ful Buys resale stores, shopping for much needed items for our food pantry, and updating benches and tables around the office with fresh coats of paint! Not

Each year, the President’s Award is given to one GRACE employee that demonstrates an outstanding performance in upholding GRACE values. The award is presented at the August meeting of the Board of Directors, the end of our fiscal year. Nominees are selected by the GRACE leadership team, and the final recipient is decided by the Board President. This year, the award was presented to Martisha Smith, the GRACE Transitional Housing Manager! Martisha started her tenure at GRACE in October of 2020. She came to us with a degree in Social Work and years of experience working in case management, student intervention, and supervision of programs. To be successful running a transitional housing program, a person needs a unique combination of administrative skills, interpersonal skills, good judgement and organizational skills. Building a solid relationship is key in working with clients but also with staff and volunteers. A strong case manager needs

Each year, our community participates in North Texas Giving Day an online event created to support the many non-profits and the work they do to meet needs across North Texas. A month from now, on September 21st, GRACE will stand alongside our community of incredible non-profits and ask for your support. By choosing GRACE, your generosity will provide stability, encourage self-sufficiency, and bring compassion and assistance to those who so desperately need it. For many years now, GRACE has offered a safety net of support and a continuum of care to families facing financial hardship. So often our clients are undercut by an illness, loss of a job, decreased work hours, car repair, accident, or some other incident that amounts to a devastating financial crisis. As we launch our 37th year of service, we look back on our accomplishments, but we are also keenly aware of the work that lies

In honor of the Labor Day holiday, all administrative and program sites will be closing at 3:00 p.m. Friday, and reopening Tuesday at 9:00 a.m. All resale sites will remain open and operating at normal hours. The program and administrative hours will be as follows: Friday, September 1st: 9:00 am – 3:00 pm Monday, September 4th: CLOSED Tuesday, September 5th: 9:00 am – 5:00 pm   For emergency assistance or food, please call 817.602.1204. Have a blessed weekend!

Do you ever wonder how volunteering benefits GRACE? Volunteers are so important to a non-profit in many ways. They boost visibility for the non-profit and they become advocates for the mission. Volunteers can increase the impacts of a cause and save the non-profit money. In regard to saving money, by donating time, volunteers are directly saving resources for GRACE. Every hour that you give to our community through volunteerism is an hour that the community gains back in real dollars. The national rate for an hour of volunteering is currently estimated to be $31.80/hr. Those dollars can then be spent in other ways that serve and better the community! What GRACE especially loves about our volunteers is the diversity of people and skills that are brought to our programs and our events. This truly helps better our community. Without volunteers, the GRACE mission is just words on paper. The volunteers

GRACE is thrilled to be the recipient of this very generous gift as a kickoff to North Texas Giving Day taking place on 9/21/23! Thank you to Communities Foundation of Texas, Amazon, and Texas State Representative Giovanni Capriglione for this incredible Monday morning surprise! A huge and heartfelt thank you to Representative Capriglione for his nomination and long-lasting partnership with GRACE. His support of our programs including the recognition of GRACE Transitional Housing graduates and fundraising events like the GRACE Gala, helps us extend compassion and assistance to those less fortunate in our community.

In honor of the Labor Day holiday, all administrative and program sites will be closing at 3:00 p.m. Friday, and reopening Tuesday at 9:00 a.m. All resale sites will remain open and operating at normal hours. The program and administrative hours will be as follows: Friday, September 1st: 9:00 am – 3:00 pm Monday, September 4th: CLOSED Tuesday, September 5th: 9:00 am – 5:00 pm   For emergency assistance or food, please call 817.602.1204. Have a blessed weekend!