2025 has been an impactful year for GRACE, both for our organization and for the youth we serve. GRACE was founded in 2017 with the hope that we would be able to to support, empower, and provide services to trafficked, exploited, and at-risk youth.
Since then we have grown in community partnerships, clients served, and programs available. All of our accomplishments and victories are attributed to our amazing supporters, YOU, who have believed in us and opened doors for us in amazing ways. Not only do our youth feel your love through the GRACE programs, we as staff are filled with gratitude for your continued radical contribution to our community!
All of our GRACE programs serve youth in a unique way, and we have continued to adapt to make spaces to meet the needs of youth survivors. Because of your support, we were always able to say YES when emergency requests arose in a crisis including temporary shelter offerings, clothing essentials, groceries, hygiene items, formula, diapers, gas & uber giftcards, and more through our GRACE Meals, GRACE Wheels, and GRACE Resource Closet.
This year we had group attendance of 904 in our after-school programs and also provided 910 warm meals to our youth and their children. Transportation is the number one barrier to services for youth and our young moms and we were able to provide more than 700 rides through our GRACE Wheels program.
Thank you to our incredible partner, The Well Community for Women, for hosting our Resource Closet!
GRACE Creatives – A Safe Space to Heal Through Art & Connection
“Being in ‘The Life’, all my thoughts were shut down. Anything I wanted to do never mattered. Now, almost 4 years later, I’m able to do all the things I wanted to and I have so many cool ideas that I get to explore on my own.” – GRACE Youth Testimonial
We see the value of art as a way to process emotions, connect with others, and heal in a safe way which is why we’re proud to offer GRACE Creatives. This year we did water colors and story sharing, painting nights, junk journaling, bracelet making, and got to include our youth in a new photography project highlighting the perseverance and strength of the individuals in our program.
Roses Collection – Youth Art Project for Rise Above 2025
GRACE Adventures – Gifting Joy Through Child-like Experiences
We recognize that many of our youth have spent their whole life in San Diego and never seen the beach, so we love to continue to offer our GRACE Adventures field trips to help youth and their children build lasting memories and spend time with our GRACE community. This year we invited our youth to look at Christmas lights in Coronado, pick pumpkins for fall, and were even able to bring them to The Rady Shell at Jacobs Park for the Barbie concert!
“GRACE’s unwavering support and love feels like breathing again after years of drowning. It feels like warmth after endless cold. It doesn’t erase the past, but it makes the future possible – and exciting! GRACE has given me hope, and with that hope, I’ve learned that I am worthy of love, healing, and a life that’s truly my own.” – Youth Testimonial
GRACE University – Building Confidence & Inspiring Youth to Dream Again
We host our weekly GRACE University program to help girls with practical advice such as job training and resume building, meal prepping and dietary advice, sewing, time management and finances among other skills. During our University we also have an incredible team of volunteers who help with childcare for our GRACE Littles so our moms can focus all of their attention on healing for themselves. This year, we were able to cover topics for group therapy, such as; Domestic Violence & DBT Distress Tolerance Skills, Emotion & Trauma Psychoeducation, Depression & Behavioral Activation, Acceptance & Commitment Therapy & Values, as well as Cycle of Abuse & Window of Tolerance Psychoeducation.
Volunteers from our Gratitude with GRACE Thanksgiving Party!
“GRACE has helped me develop a deeper sense of security and belonging. Being around people who genuinely want to see me succeed has motivated me to keep striving—even when life feels overwhelming. It’s not just about building a new life that makes my old survival methods unnecessary—it’s about knowing I have people who believe in my potential even when I can’t.” – GRACE Youth Testimonial
GRACE Refuge – A Bridge to Safety & Restoring Hope for The Future
This year we were able to launch our long awaited dream, GRACE Refuge. Our community rose to the occasion and supplied us with furniture, kitchen utensils, decorations and clothing to make our space a home for the youth and children who will live here. This is the first parenting survivor safe housing program in San Diego, and we will be able to provide emergency, trauma-informed support to youth for up to 21 days while GRACE helps them to find permanent housing.
Thank You To Our Sponsors!
We could not have walked alongside our youth this year without a community that showed up with unwavering love, compassion, and action. Your support didn’t just meet needs, it restored dignity, created joy, and reminded our youth that they are seen and valued. A heartfelt thank you to OB1 Church for opening your doors and your hearts by hosting both a spring celebration and a Thanksgiving gathering. We are deeply grateful to Glam Garage as well, for gifting one of our young moms her very first experience in a professional salon; a moment that made her feel cared for, celebrated, and worthy. Because of your donations, GRACE was able to sponsor a youth to go to aviation camp in pursuit of her dream of becoming a pilot. One of the biggest blessings that GRACE received this year was a grant from Gesner Johnson to be able to purchase a new vehicle, to be able to provide safe and trustworthy transportation for youth and their children.
The community continues to show up for our clients and we could not be more thankful for all that you have helped us with in making dreams become reality for our youth. Another special thank you to the Mission Beach Women’s Club for their kind grant to be able to launch GRACE Refuge! We extend our deepest gratitude to The Grove Church, Submerge Church, and the Mission Beach Women’s Club for your continued and faithful support of GRACE. Your partnership makes it possible for us to pour love, hope, and restoration into the lives of the youth we serve. We are also sincerely thankful to Stephania Rene for investing in the health and nutrition of our youth, empowering them with tools to build healthier, stronger lives. From all of us at GRACE, we are incredibly grateful to our sponsors and donors whose generosity helped make Rise Above 2025 our most successful fundraiser to date. Thank you to Hollie and Marcus, OPTML Health, Hayden Stephenson, Cinda Brockman, Leah Hebert, Bob Mahoney, Valerie Thatcher, and Alyssa Dueck—your belief in this mission is creating real, lasting impact.
From the bottom of our hearts, thank you to Hollie and Marcus Carter for opening your home and hosting such a meaningful Christmas party for our youth. Because of your generosity and the incredible support of our community, our youth experienced a Christmas filled with joy, care, and memories they will carry with them for a lifetime. Through the kindness of our Secret Santas, each stocking was thoughtfully built, every gift was chosen with intention, and each youth was seen and celebrated in a deeply personal way. To every Secret Santa and donor who poured love into making this season brighter, thank you for going above and beyond to remind our youth that they are valued, cherished, and never forgotten.
“This is the first time I celebrated Christmas in 11 years” –GRACE Youth Testimony
All of our programs were made hoping to meet broad needs that we observed day-in and day-out while working with our youth, but each individual has specific needs, and as a program GRACE is committed to helping youth find stability, safety and the opportunity to chase their dreams in every way possible.
“Beyond the material support, GRACE has also given me something just as valuable: emotional connection. The peer support groups have been a lifeline. Being able to sit with other women who understand what I’m going through—who’ve faced similar challenges and still show up with strength and love—has been incredibly healing. These groups have reminded me that I’m not alone, and that there’s no shame in asking for help. We lift each other up, and that sense of community has helped me rebuild my confidence.” GRACE Youth Testimonial
Thank you for your impact in 2025 and we can’t wait to see what God has in store for 2026!
Many blessings,
Girls Rising Above Child Exploitation