Grace grew up on a dirt road in rural Massachusetts where she developed a love for nature and art. As a young adult, she knew she wanted to be a teacher, so she earned a Bachelor's and Master's degree from Piedmont College in Early Childhood Education. Grace taught in Georgia's public schools for 16 years before she decided to devote more time to creating art for children. She now teaches part-time with North Georgia Technical College. She lives in Demorest, GA with her husband, son, two dogs, one cat, two chickens, and two ducks!
Grace wrote, illustrated, and self-published her first picture book called Sunrise Invitations. This project was over 20 years in the making as she started the book as a teenager! The book follows a scrappy girl who travels to magical worlds with each new sunrise from her seat on a school bus. She also has a kindergarten reader and a middle grades novel in the works!
However, Grace doesn't just write and paint, she also makes music! She sings and plays bass guitar with her husband, Jake, who is a full-time musician. They created a band called the Jackie Papers that makes family music to nurture kindness in listeners of all ages. They released their first single called I Can Do Hard Things in March of 2024.
Grace is excited to share her creativity and hard work with children in Northeast Georgia. Please check out the Reviews page to see what her community is saying about her and the Jackie Papers! You can also read more about her in Now Habersham's Livin’ the Dream article here.