A video campaign in the summer of 2021 even saw members of the NFL’s Minnesota Vikings and the NHL’s Minnesota Wild offer short videos of hope and encouragement to affected children. Letters of Love has been particularly instrumental in offering emotional support to children who have been unable to see friends and family due to COVID-19. We do everything we can to simply put a smile on their face, and ensure they know that they are so loved, so strong, and so supported by people all around the world.” I feel so blessed to be an organization that focuses solely on bringing joy to these children, though. “Working to support children who are battling cancer and other serious and sometimes chronic illnesses can absolutely be extremely difficult mentally. “There have been many, many tears cried,” she says. In addition to running Letters of Love, Grace and her small team must also contend with the emotions inherent in their line of work. “I do everything from training volunteers and club ambassadors, paying bills, designing merchandise, preparing financial predictions and overviews, applying for grants, to going through each and every card ensuring they are appropriate to send out to hospitals.” And in the process it has become a full-time job for Grace. Since its inception, Letters of Love has grown to more than 25 clubs with more than 1,000 members providing emotional support to more than 60,000 patients in children’s hospitals around the world. Beyond the amount of kids and families we are able to support, it allows me to feel so much closer and more connected to my mom.” Speaking about her nonprofit today, Grace says, “I can’t find enough words to explain how blessed I feel to have this organization. From then on, Letters of Love grew so fast that during her senior year in high school, Grace had to start a GoFundMe to help cover the cost of card-making materials. Much to her surprise, more than 100 students showed up for the first club meeting. “I wanted to create an opportunity for people to help beyond donating money, and one that anyone could be a part of, no matter their financial status.”In October 2018, Grace started Letters of Love, a club at her high school in Long Lake, Minnesota, to emotionally support children battling cancer and other serious illnesses through letter-writing and craft-making. But she never felt like she was doing enough. When she got to high school, Grace became involved in the Leukemia & Lymphoma Society and a handful of other organizations. “I distinctly remember my dad constantly reminding my two little sisters, Bella and Sophie, and I that happiness is a choice, and it was now our job to turn this heartbreaking event in our life into something positive.” Grace’s father was instrumental in helping in the healing process of his daughters. “I realized that you never know when someone could leave you, so you have to love the people you love with your whole heart, every day.” Losing my mom put the world in a completely different perspective for me,” Grace says. Sadly, when Grace was just 10 years old, her mother lost her battle with cancer.“ These cherished letters brought immeasurable peace and joy to their mom during her sickness. Nearly every day, Grace and her two younger sisters would hand-make cards and fill them with drawings and messages of love, which their mother would hang all over the walls of her hospital room.