Grapevine’s Dark Knight Presents the Bat Ball 2022! Ladies and gentleman, it’s time to rev up the bat mobile and get into gear, because the BAT Ball 2022 is here. Established in 2015, Grapevine’s Dark Knight quickly became a ministry for putting smiles on the faces of young and old alike. From appearing in hospitals as Batman himself or teaching Sunday school at Whites Chapel in Southlake, Jason Parker knows how to put a smile on your face. His sense of humor and passion for the community inspires people to become their own hero. That is why GRACE is grateful to be one of the beneficiaries for this event. With the renaming of this event, (formally named GalaCon) and the urge of the community to get out of the house after a year of COVID-19, Jason believes Bat Ball 2022 will be the best one yet. He has worked hard

As GRACE gears up for our upcoming volunteer appreciation event this spring, we want to take a moment to introduce the Volunteer Manager Ryan Jackson, the face behind it all! A natural people-person and recent graduate from the University of Texas at Arlington, GRACE was lucky to snag Ryan when we did! Prior to his days at GRACE, Ryan received a degree in Public Relations and Broadcast and went straight into work at the Texas State Fair as a PR Assistant. The confidence and charisma he brought to radio interviews, television appearances and film shoots are just part of what makes him so great to work alongside. Ryan’s first week on the job was the week of Gala- not at all overwhelming for a new-hire. Much to everyone’s surprise, he was organizing groups of volunteers like he’d worked the event his whole life! After accepting the position as Volunteer Manager,

We are just days away from our fourth annual GRACE Poker Tournament, and the excitement continues to fill the air. Just thinking about the sweet smell of a fresh deck of cards, poker chips and the thought of winning the grand prize can make anyone wonderstruck. The facility that will be hosting our amazing event will be none other than Park Place Jaguar Land Rover DFW. Park Place has been hosting for the last two years, and this year just like the other years, they are sure to not disappoint. Park Place and their amazing staff have supported GRACE for well over a decade, and their continuous support does not go unnoticed. Some of the ways they have supported GRACE include volunteering for our programs, sponsoring events, making donations, and many more. The love they have for the community and always being able to lend a hand to their neighbors

The fourth annual GRACE Poker Tournament is just one short week away. Here at GRACE, we have been working to prepare for this event, making sure the tables have been polished. That the chips have been racked and are ready to go. Before you know it Saturday, February 5th will be here. This year’s event will again be at the beautiful and upscale Park Place Jaguar Land Rover DFW. This annual event raises funds for our GRACE programs and has been an enormous success since it was started two years ago by chairs Lynda and Robert Warner. GRACE is honored to once again have the Wright Construction Company as our presenting sponsors for the 2022 Poker tournament. If there’s one name many people in the community know in Grapevine, is the Wright family. Through the years, this family has been a significant part of Grapevine, owning business, volunteerism throughout the

We are excited to announce that once again, GRACE has been recognized for our transparency and dedication to our clients by GuideStar. For the second consecutive year, GRACE has earned the Platinum Seal- the highest rating given. GuideStar, which is a part of an organization called Candid, serves as a rating and recognition system for non-profits around the world. When deciding which organizations receive this award, Candid takes into consideration the accessibility of financial documents, how frequently information is updated and other practices that maintain the integrity of a company. According to Candid’s website, “Every year, millions of nonprofits spend trillions of dollars around the world. Candid finds out where that money comes from, where it goes, and why it matters. Through research, collaboration, and training, Candid connects people who want to change the world to the resources they need to do it. Candid’s data tools on nonprofits, foundations, and

It is award season, and we were excited to attend both the Grapevine Chamber Community awards which were held on the 27th at the Hilton DFW Lakes Executive Conference Center and the Metroport awards which were held at the Texas Motor Speedway. Both events recognize companies, nonprofits, and individuals and celebrate volunteerism and citizenship throughout the community. It also shows that you’re never too old, or too young to give back to your community, whether through volunteerism, or through your generous donations. Here at GRACE, we strive to be good Stewarts of the community. Giving back to the community and raising awareness of community involvement is a key factor in the GRACE community. Shonda Schaefer and Christina Cates are the few members of the GRACE community to be nominated for awards for their ability to put the needs of the community first, and for that we applaud them for going

GRACE welcomes our new Special Events Coordinator, Mary Tejada! Mary’s passion has been event planning since she could remember. Having been a part of a big family since she was a little girl, hostess is a role she took on at an early age. Before taking on her role at GRACE, Mary was a Sr. Administrative Assistant and Health Fair Coordinator for Texas Health Resources in Ft. Worth for over two decades. Here she assisted with many health fairs and community events for the hospital. Mary came to GRACE about month before the 2021 GRACE “angels among us” Gala, and automatically had an endless list of tasks to be taken care of. She credits Director of Community Engagement, CiCi Cates, whom she inherited the role from, for being a great guide and helping her transition into the new role. Mary’s role in the GRACE Gala helped prepare her for many

We have some of the easiest sponsors to brag on who are quick to support GRACE when given the chance. These sponsors come from a wide range of skills that not only help GRACE, but also benefit the community as a whole with their service and loyalty. New to the table is our King of Hearts sponsor, the Champions Club, known for its exquisite food, high caliber entertainment and luxury atmosphere. Founded by a group of world-class hospitality professionals, Champions introduces a family-oriented entertainment concept in Dallas, complete with fine dining, live music, poker, stand-up comedy, trivia, wine-tastings, whiskey tastings, private event rentals and more. We are so excited to welcome them to this year’s event, as they are sure to add a level of class to the evening. Laura and Johnny Campanello are this year’s Queen of Diamond Sponsors. The couple has resided in the Grapevine community for over

GRACE is extremely blessed to have the immense support it does from the community. Since opening at our new location, Donation Station has seen an unprecedented amount of goods come through our driveway. Because of your generous donations, hundreds if not thousands of individuals will have the items needed to start fresh or become self-sufficient amidst a health or financial crisis. Your generosity has been so overwhelming, we have to take a moment to catch our breath. Due to staffing and volunteer shortages, Donation Station will be reducing its hours. Beginning today, Donation Station will be closed on Sundays and Mondays, and continue to be open from 8-5 Tuesdays through Saturdays. This excludes Thursdays, however, as the drive will be closed to allow staff and volunteers available to focus on production inside. We apologize for any inconvenience this creates. While we won’t be accepting donations on these days, we would

Whether it’s a generous donation or an item that hits close to home, GRACE has the best donors and supporters. A generous GRACE donor and supporter won a silent auction of a window package. After winning the package, the winner immediately called GRACE and offered to give the windows to any of our clients that they thought could benefit from them. Christine Szymaszek, who is over the GRACE Friends and Family program thought of three hopeful families in the program who would enjoy the new windows. The families were thrilled to receive the special gift almost couldn’t believe it. Mike Vinez from Windows of Texas installed his premium top of the line windows into the homes of the families. After the installation of the windows, the recipients shared their appreciation to Mike and his team, thanking them for taking the time to install the windows. The families have expressed their