The GRACE family is proud to introduce Bilingual Caseworker, Marisol Landaverde! Originally from Irving, Marisol graduated from UTA in 2018 with a BA in criminal justice with an Arabic minor, hoping to work in counter-terrorism. “My plan for working in law enforcement didn’t work out but I knew that I loved helping people,” said Marisol. During college Marisol worked for five years for the Grapevine Police Department with the Outreach Center, working with families and also helping kids through the VAST program (Valuable After-School Time). She really enjoyed the work but needed a full time job after graduation. “I got a job in finance and hated it…it destroyed me. It wasn’t a fit for my personality, the work was very black and white. I never felt like I helped anyone so after two years of being miserable there, I left and put faith in God that something good would happen.”

With three weeks left before the start of summer, GRACE is well on its way to preparing for our summer feeding programs: Feed Our Kids and GRACE Grocery Giveaway.  Thank you to everyone who has scheduled their groups, families, friends and co-workers to provide food to families who suffer with food insecurity….especially during the summer.  There is still room for some additional volunteer groups and we would LOVE to talk to you about availability.  In addition, GRACE has scheduled a virtual FOK/GGG Kick-Off for Tuesday, May 11th at 6:30.  At the FOK/GGG Kick-Off, we will discuss specifics about both programs, what to expect, what you can be doing now to prepare for the summer and additional opportunities for involvement.  Although we ask all site coordinators to attend this meeting, anyone is welcome.  If you have signed up to volunteer with one of these programs this summer and have not received

Volunteers are vital to GRACE which is why we always look forward to National Volunteer Week and our annual Volunteer Appreciation event. The theme for this year was Virtual Volunteer Vacation, it was a great event and we were so proud to honor a number of standout volunteers. This year our top prize, Volunteer of the Year, was awarded the Wright Family for their unbelievable contributions to our organization and the area. The event hosted by our CEO Shonda Schaefer, highlighted great moments, events, and individual achievements from our Volunteer Family. We handed out plaques to 18 different groups, families, and individuals that stood out from the 5,000 volunteers who give their time to our community each year. NBC 5’s Laura Harris was able to pop in for an inspirational message thanking everyone for their service. It was a fun event and one that we are so proud to host.

We have an amazing staff here at GRACE so anytime we have the opportunity to show them our appreciation we go for it! This week we celebrated Administrative Professionals Day and sent four of our amazing GRACE employees off on a day of fun! Our administrative team at GRACE, Melissa Simpkins Director of Administration & Executive Asst. to the CEO, Accounting Associate Lucy Tadrous, Stewardship Manager Jill Norvelle, and Bilingual Client Services Coordinator Nancy Polley, do the behind-the-scenes work that keep us running smoothly…it’s not easy work! Spread sheets, mail and emails, budgets, financial statements, donation verification, recognition and appreciation shout outs…when you write a check or donate to GRACE, our Admin staff make sure that gift is correctly catalogued so it goes to the right place. The work they do every day is vital to our success as an organization and the success of our clients which is our

We want to thank our partners at First Baptist Grapevine who did an unbelievable job beautifying our Transitional Housing Unit Homes! A team from FBG led by Kelli Lawrence spent an entire afternoon at our Transitional Housing property working on a lot of different projects including painting, yard work, landscaping, cleaning, and general upkeep. We take pride in our TH families so it’s important for us to make sure that they live in a beautiful place as they work to build better lives for themselves. Martisha Smith, our Transitional Housing Manager couldn’t be more appreciative of all their hard work. “Transitional Housing is so blessed to have volunteers like Kelli Lawrence and the heart and passion for change that she possesses. Initially Kelli and her First Baptist Church Grapevine group showed love to Transitional Housing during the Christmas holiday with an abundance of kindness through fellowship, gift baskets, and dinner

It is hard to believe that summer is just around the corner! But before we know it, school will be out and one of GRACE’s most popular programs will begin: Feed Our Kids. Feed Our Kids (FOK) has been in existence in one form or another for around 20 years. It allows individuals, groups, and organizations to “adopt” one of 6 sites that will make sure children who live in predominantly lower income areas have a meal and social interaction during the summer. Last year, over 32,000 lunches were provided to children at six different locations. This year’s program begins on Tuesday, June 1st and runs through Friday, August 13th.  Every Monday thru Friday a group of volunteers is scheduled to provide a lunch and drink to children whose families usually qualify for the Free and Reduced lunch program during the school year but may find it harder during the summer

GRACE is excited to announce the Wright Family and Wright Construction Company as the presenting sponsor of the 2021 GRACE Poker Tournament! This annual event raises funds for our life-changing programs and has been a huge success since we introduced it two years ago. ”This is such a fun event and it’s exciting to watch everyone compete, we just love GRACE and want to support any way we can,” said Kindal Wright Kreamer, Wright Construction Co. General Council and GRACE Board Member. “We’re all about helping our neighbors and the families in our community and that’s why we partner with GRACE. Whether it’s thru the Food Pantry, Transitional Housing, or the Clinic, GRACE is such a great resource for so many people.” Park Place Jaguar Land Rover DFW is eager to host our 2021 GRACE Poker Tournament at their cutting edge facility Saturday, May 22nd, 2021. This year’s prize package

The First Quarter 2021 GRACE MVP Award winner received multiple nominations based on Exceptional Customer Service, Outstanding Attitude, Interdepartmental Relations/Teamwork and Excellence in Mission. This person resides in one of the most unique positions here at GRACE. One nominator stated they cannot count how many times they have reached out to this person to help out with the success of their department and every single time the answers are polite in manner as well as polite in person. This person is dependable and willing to do whatever it takes to get the job done. This person has been pivotal in the daily operations of Transitional Housing and it was stated “I don’t know what we would do without him.”  He does a great job supporting all departments, but did especially great work by jumping in to help the Christmas Cottage with all of the deliveries while never missing a beat

We hope that you are all safe and healthy. We feel extremely fortunate to be able to be back in person working and volunteering together. And in honor of National Volunteer Week, we have a few in person events to celebrate YOU! Food Pantry, FREE Lunch April 21, 11:30 to 3:30PM, located at the community garden. We will fire up the grill for hotdogs and play games. Donation Station, FREE Lunch April 20, 12-1:30PM, snacks served all week with gift bags for the students, a gift table and a photo area. If you volunteer at the Medical Clinic, Client Services, or Transitional Housing, those sites will be in touch with you! Our main event, Virtual Volunteer Vacation will be held on Friday, April 23, at 3 PM. Register here now! We could not do our work without the volunteer force that helps make up the GRACE Family we often refer

GRACE has a new Lion in the house! GRACE Pantry Manager, Lion Marcus Miranda, has recently joined the Colleyville Lions Club allowing him to be more involved in the community like so many of the GRACE family members. GRACE thrives on the countless hours of service from volunteers and community partners and we too believe in being invested in the community through civic groups like the Lions Club. A young, diverse, and international club, the Lions Club boasts over 1 million members across the globe who serve worldwide. GRACE has a long standing relationship with the Colleyville Lions Club.  “Colleyville Lions Club is an amazing organization made up of people who care about our community. They assist so many families with a variety of services and support GRACE monetarily as well as with donations of food, tickets to events, and more. For Marcus to be a member of this group is an