In honor of the Independence Day holiday, all administrative and program sites at 837 E. Walnut Street will be closing at 3:00 p.m. on Thursday, July 3rd and reopening at 9:00 a.m on Monday, July 7th. The hours will be as follows:

Thurs, July 3rd: 9:00 am – 3:00 pm

Fri, July 4th: CLOSED

Mon, July 7th: 9:00 am – 5:00 pm

GRACEful Buys Resale stores and Donation Station will remain open under normal operating hours.

GRACEful Buys Grapevine / Euless: 10:00 – 7:00p.m. (Tues-Saturday)

Donation Station: 8:00 – 5:00p.m. (Tues-Saturday)

If you have an emergency that cannot wait until normal operating hours, please contact Client Services at 817-602-1204. We apologize for any inconvenience this may cause.

Have a safe and blessed holiday!

Summer is here and all of us are participants in the annual Texas tradition of finding creative ways to beat the heat!

For some, it’s heading to the pool. For others, they are off to cooler vacation spots, and for a few creative community partners including 121 Community Church, it’s celebrating Christmas in July!

Though the GRACE Christmas Cottage seems like a long way off, after serving 4,260 individuals in December of 2024, the truth is that it never really left our minds.

Celebrating Christmas in July allows us to specifically focus on gathering teen gifts and ensuring that parents and guardians have a unique selection when shopping for their tween or teen.

So often, this selection of gifts pales in comparison to others offered to our shoppers at the cottage. GRACE does the best we can to keep the selection stocked by purchasing a variety as needed, but our hope is that through this special focus, we will find ourselves well-prepared for the holiday season…and those cooler temperatures!

To take a peek at our Teen Wishlist, please click here:

https://www.amazon.com/hz/wishlist/ls/2MW15X9EMOUKI?ref_=wl_share

Any purchases made from this list will ship directly to us for our elves to hide away until the seasons change and the holidays approach.

Every student deserves to start their school year with confidence! GRACE helps add to that confidence by ensuring that students have all the tools they need to succeed in the semesters ahead.

With that in mind, GRACE is excited to announce our annual Back-to-School event will be held at 121 Community Church on August 2nd, 7am-12pm! If you’re looking for a way to get involved, we have two opportunities for you!

Listed here are items needed to fill the backpacks:

• Crayola Crayons & Markers
• Rulers
• Poly Folders
• Scissors
• Sharpeners
• Erasers
• Highlighters
• Pens & Pencils
• Elmer’s Glue & Glue Sticks
• Vinyl Binders & Dividers
• Notebook Paper
• Composition Books
• Index Cards

GRACE is also looking for volunteers to assist with the loading and unloading of all event materials to and from GRACE and 121 Church on the morning of the event. Current GRACE volunteers, please check your Voly account for the opportunity in the coming weeks, or please visit our website www.gracegrapevine.org to learn how you can get started as a volunteer with GRACE!

If you are a resident of northeast Tarrant County and are in need of school supplies, please bring your child’s school registration information, your financial details, children’s birth certificates, and IDs for everyone over the age of 18, to GRACE starting July 30th! Client Services is open from 10am to 6pm with the last appointment of the day being at 5pm. The Client Services office will be closed on August 1st in preparation for the Back to School Fair. Any further questions, please contact the Client Services main line at 817-488-7009.

Note: If you are a GCISD family who has already signed up for the fair, you are all set – just simply show up!

We are ready and excited to make this year’s Back to School event as successful as possible for our GCISD families!

GRACE was honored to celebrate the staff of Five Star Subaru of Grapevine on Monday, June 23rd, and their efforts in the ‘Share the Love’ campaign!

Sam Pack, his son Tony Pack, General Manager Tony Hooman, and staff from Sam Pack’s Five Star Subaru of Grapevine and Subaru Corporate presented a check to GRACE staff and Board Members at the gathering to show appreciation for the generous collaboration!

The dealership hosted its annual Share the Love Event benefiting GRACE over the holiday months. Each year, Subaru corporate and Five-Star Subaru donate a portion of every new Subaru purchased or leased, as well as a portion of every routine service visit to a charitable organization of the shopper’s choosing.

This is the 7th year that GRACE has been chosen as a recipient of this campaign and we are incredibly grateful!

Subaru’s Share the Love has provided almost $320 million to national and hometown non-profit organizations for each of the approximately 640 Subaru dealerships around the U.S. The Grapevine location alone donated over $871,000 to organizations in the community.

GRACE is incredibly thankful for the generous efforts and contributions of Subaru and Five Star Subaru of Grapevine for hosting this benevolent event!

If you or someone you know is looking for a new car now, make your way into Five Star Subaru of Grapevine at 2651 William D. Tate Ave.  They show the best care for their customers just as they do for our community.

Thank you, Five Star Subaru of Grapevine!

“GRACE is a collaboration of so many who work together to make sure that all in our community can thrive and build a beautiful life. I am so grateful to be a part of that GRACE family.” And a part of the family Jina Walker has become as she completes her first year of service as the new (not so new) Chief Program Officer of GRACE. Jina started with GRACE in her new role in August of 2024, but she is no stranger to providing grace and compassion to those who are struggling and in need of a little helping hand.

With over 12 years of experience in social service programming including outreach, housing, and emergency assistance, Jina brings a wealth of knowledge and experience to the table. She is the very definition of the phrase “hit the ground running” and within her first year she has already made some remarkable improvements to an already amazing team. Notably she has spearheaded an expansion of hours that GRACE is able to serve families, adding three additional hours each day to better accommodate clients without interfering with other responsibilities they may have such as work schedules. She has also created a system where clients can walk-in or, if able, can make an appointment, which has cut down on clients wait times for services substantially. Most exciting is the addition of new ways for GRACE to serve the community, building on the successes of our existing Mentorship Housing program. The GRACE team is thrilled with her efforts so far and can’t wait to see what the next 12 months bring for the programs in her charge including pantry, clinic, seasonal programs as well as emergency financial programming and housing.

As Jina so aptly puts it, “The need is great, but GRACE will always find a way to serve our community and provide continued excellence, just as we have for the past nearly 40 years.”

Jina comes to us with 21 years of experience in nonprofits including most recently serving as Director of Programs for Tarrant County Samaritan Housing. She holds a Masters in Education, Guidance and Counseling and is a doctoral student at Abilene Christian University pursuing a Doctorate of Education, Positive Organizational Leadership.

Join us in welcoming Jina to her 2^nd year with GRACE and congratulating her on a job well done in year one!

As housing costs rise across Northeast Tarrant County, more local families are struggling to find and keep safe, stable homes. The affordable housing shortage has become one of the most pressing challenges facing our community, and GRACE is working to meet this need head-on.

In 2024 we opened a new housing program focused on families emerging from financial emergencies, and earlier this year we added a second initiative to serve households with more complex or long‑term needs. Both programs are anchored in the belief that housing is the starting point for lasting self‑sufficiency.

To help renters keep their homes once they move in, GRACE introduced RentSmart, a skills‑based course that teaches tenants how to communicate with landlords, understand lease responsibilities, and make on‑time payments—reducing costly violations for everyone involved.

The next piece of the puzzle is stronger collaboration with property owners. On Wednesday, July 9, from 1:00–3:00 PM, GRACE and Grapevine Outreach will host a Property Partnership Coalition Lunch & Learn at GRACE’s headquarters (837 E Walnut St., Grapevine). Local landlords and property managers will preview RentSmart, hear from Partnership Home about community benefits, and join an open forum aimed at building a supportive network for both tenants and housing providers.

Community members who would like more details about the coalition or RentSmart can reach McKenna Kline at mkline@GRACEGrapevine.org or 817‑305‑4631.