When thinking about Christmas, you can’t help but to wonder: how big do other states and cities celebrate it? Do they throw up a sign or two, or do they go all out with musical lights, tree decorations and holiday traditions? Living in Grapevine, you are already familiar with how we do it here. If you don’t, simply take a stroll downtown, and your jaw will hit the pavement. GRACE was fortunate to travel to California to visit a fellow Texas relative this month. CEO Shonda Schaefer and Stacy Pacholick were invited to the Kelly Clarkson Show to share the story of Christmas Cottage and how it is reaching the community. You heard it right- award winning, country singing, and now daytime Emmy award winning show host, Kelly Clarkson!
This amazing opportunity came when Clarkson, a Texas native, wanted to do a segment on someone making a positive impact this season in her home state. What better location to start in than the Christmas capitol of Texas? There are countless organizations spreading God’s love and the Christmas spirit in the area, but GRACE was one of those lucky enough to hear from of Kelly and her team. It should go without saying, Shonda accepted the invitation, and her and Stacy flew off to California where the show is produced!
As soon as Shonda returned to the office, she and the GRACE Staff planned a watch party to celebrate this blessing. The watch party was attended by many people in in the community that wanted to support GRACE and the mission of GRACE.
Being a Texas girl, Kelly knew about the rich history of the Christmas Capitol of Texas. The three ladies talked about the decorations, the lights and festive vibe of Grapevine, Texas as a whole. Kelly then turned the conversation toward GRACE and the Christmas Cottage, where both Shonda and Stacy explained the goal and the message behind the idea of the Cottage which made Kelly shed a tear or two. The segment ended with Kelly announcing that HEB sees the works that GRACE does for the community and in turn want’s to donate $10,000 to the GRACE programs.
The Kelly Clarkson show was a huge blessing and opportunity for not only GRACE but for the city of Grapevine for all of the lives we hope to touch. We thank everyone who watched the show, and if you missed it and want to catch it again, follow us on all of our social media pages and stay tuned for the link! In the meantime, keep bringing in those Texas smiles. Happy Holidays!