Belive In Grace Resource

Who We Are

Transforming Lives Through Grace
Believe In Grace is a non-profit organization dedicated to bridging the gap between people in need and the community resources available to them.

• We connect individuals with local community resources to help them achieve better outcomes and brighter futures.
• We assist community members with essential paperwork, including SNAP, WIC, job applications, rental documentation, and more.
• We provide ongoing support to young adults who have aged out of the foster care system and continue to need guidance.
• We offer light housework and yard work assistance to individuals living with disabilities or physical impairments.
Director Gamel Mcghee
I am a native of Franklin County all my life. I have been a therapeutic foster parent for 23 years and have been in the mental health field for 21 years. I have seen the break down where one service must stop and how the people do not know how to connect to another service they may need. I want to be able to connect the two together to make people successful with opportunities they need to enhance their lives.
Our Mission
Believe in Grace Resources, Inc. wants to help individuals and families by creating real change in our community. We will accomplish this by bridging the gap between the people we help and our local resources. We also want to help the youth who are aging out of foster care to grow individually and be able to impact our community with a healthy support system so that they may one day be able to self-advocate. We want to empower families with the proper support and access to resources to be able to create stable home for their children. We want the elderly to know we are here to serve them with services they need in our community. We are here ultimately to increase awareness of available resources to that our clients can overcome hardship and live fulfilling lives.

Believe in Grace Resource (BIG)

A little story about my goal and mission for Believe in Grace Resource, also known as BIG. I
have always been surrounded by a big family of my own, some biological and others adopted,
so, I have witnessed first hand the importance of family and unity. To this date, I have fostered
approximately 200 children. This has not always been easy, however I have always been
committed to each one of their fragile situations/lifestyle experiences. Through the years, the
behaviors and multiple experiences have not been easy to manage, however I refused to give
up on any of them. Actually I have made the choice to adopt many of the kids I have fostered.
Many of these foster children would disrespect, misbehave, demonstrate defiance etc.
Although this was not easy, I continued my mission. I am a single foster parent with support
that would always encourage and welcome biological families. Each child/sibling group I have
fostered comes with unique circumstances which requires a lot of understanding and
commitment to be open-minded. For example, one of of my adopted sons had already been
adopted before he turned 4 years old. Sadly the adoptive mother passed away when he was 11
years old and he was placed in foster care. He was not from Virginia and had no contact with his
bio;ogical family. We reached over the years to make contact and to provide as much support
as possible as this was a huge loss. Once he turned 18, this past year, we assisted and
encouraged him to locate his siblings that were living out of state. After much hesitation, he did
so and know feels like he has his “whole village.” That’s one of many rewarding success stories.
Through BIG, it is my mission to connect foster and adopted children to their biological families.

How To Become A Foster Parent

Talk with your family about becoming a foster parent "it takes a village".
Contact your local department of social services or a foster care agency.
Get Certified - Training, Paperwork, & Preparation

While the certification process varies from state to state and even agency to agency, you should expect to complete the following:

Application
Training (usually 30 or more hours)
How to partner with a child's biological family
Background Checks
Home Study

There are many local agencies.

Thinking About Fostering?

D's Story

Another foster care success story!

"D" came to me when he was only 3 years old. He came with his 3 siblings. At a very young age, D was diagnosed with autism after having difficulty with his speech and verbal expressions. D has continued to have difficulty with verbalizing himself and communicating with others. However, that never stopped him from pursuing work ethic and goals. I supported him through these struggles, as well as enhancements. He participated in the local Goodwill summer programs and DARS, (Department of Rehabilitative Services), programs for job coaching and opportunities that accommodated his learning disability. D began working part-time at a local retail stocking store, where he worked for 4 years. When Believe in Grace (BIG) opened in 2022, we helped him gain a full-time position at another local department store. He was able to save his money and understand the importance of hard work and money management.

“D's” story

Another foster care success story!

“D” came to me when he was only 3 years old. It was him and his 3 siblings. At a very young
age, D was diagnosed with autism after having difficulty with his speech and verbal expressions.
D has continued to have difficulty with verbalizing himself and communicating with others.
However, that never stopped him from pursuing work ethic and goals. I supported him through
these struggles, as well as enhancements. He participated in the local Goodwill summer
programs and DARS, (Department of Rehabilitative Services), programs for job coaching and
opportunities that accommodated his learning disability. D began working part time at a local
retail stocking store, where he continued there for 4 years. When (BIG), Believe in Grace),
opened in 2022, we helped him gain a full time position at another local department store. He
was able to save his money and understand the importance of hard work and money
management skills. He demonstrated an understanding and knowledge of preparing for his
future. During this time, D took advantage of visiting a Job Corp site that he is interested in
pursuing when he turns 21. Just recently, D was assisted with a coach from BIG, and was able
to purchase his first car on his own. We are so proud of D for overcoming his everyday life
struggles, adapting to foster care and his learning disabilities. D is a prime example of childhood
success. Through a magnitude of agencies all working collectively to provide opportunities for
children in the foster care system, this is also helping wall of these stories that we can now tell
is years of work with foster and to shape our future for these foster/adopted children in our
very own small community. Us here at BIG, are so thankful to be able to assist and guide foster
care children even after they age out of the system. We could not do this without collaboration
and support from the other much needed agencies listed above.

Ask About Our BIG Thrift Store

Our thrift store has $1 - $2 items and other items at a very low price. Any foster child or any person in need can come in and get 10 pieces free with a referral. We do accept donations. The BIG thrift store is located at our office.

Have A Donation?