Going Above & Beyond!
April 16, 2026Grace Gives Back!
Grace Gives Back!
At the age of 14, you would think a teenager’s main focus would be on activities such as sports or video games, but not Grace! At just 8 years old, Grace has been fighting alongside HVAF to END veteran homelessness, while at the same time, serving as American Legion Auxiliary Junior Vice President. This accomplished teen raised over $28,000 for veterans in need for her project with the American Legion Auxiliary Juniors! What started as selling handmade crafts as a child has led to speaking to churches and American Legion meetings, asking for funding!
When Grace began her fundraising journey to help veterans in need, she made a personal goal of raising $10,000 to support the veterans HVAF serves. The first step was engaging with the community. She started speaking at churches and telling them about HVAF in hopes of raising money for a cause she has been passionate about throughout her life. Her first fundraising efforts raised over $4,000, a little short of her initial goal, but Grace was determined to get there!
Grace leaned on her artistic skills to find new ways to reach her goal. She began painting and selling colorful glass bottles. For each glass bottle that was sold, the proceeds went straight towards helping veterans at HVAF, and her fundraising efforts began to take off!
Grace really began making strides when she started selling Poppy designs. “I’d even do, like, special orders for some people, I think. One of them I did was Spider Man themed. It was really fun, and I sold them for $35 with 100% of the proceeds going towards the project.”
Grace as a young child, already giving back at HVAF!
Grace’s grandmother, Judy, was the former Department Secretary for the state of Indiana American Legion Auxiliary and is a life-long auxiliary member. As soon as Grace was born, Judy made sure she became a member of the auxiliary.
Judy looks back at that memorable moment and says, “we were sitting on the front row of the National Convention in Louisville, Kentucky. I asked the State Auxiliary President if I could have my phone with me, because we knew she was going to be born. And so, the minute she was born, the phone rang, and we all heard her cry. And so, at 10 minutes of age, she became an auxiliary member.”
Judy has always had a sense of pride seeing the work Grace does on a daily basis. “I’ve always known and been very proud of everything she does, but she’s become more and more confident and more active with the homeless veterans. But I was really surprised when she came to her parents when she was eight and asked not to receive presents, but to ask the family and her friends to please bring things for the homeless veterans.”
Grace is still heavily involved with the American Legion and recently served as Vice President of the American Legion Auxiliary Juniors.
“I’ve always grown up with the American Legion Auxiliary, so it’s something I inherently like and learned about really early. It’s about how to help people in need, how to help your community, and how to be a good American.”
Grace has her future set on continuing to make this world a better place.
“I want to help people however I can. So that’s one of my big motivators, putting the work in and making a difference in life in general.”
It is very exciting to see what Grace will do next with her future career utilizing the passion she has for the most vulnerable veterans in our community!
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