We’re excited to introduce you to Grace Lotharp, Empowerment Outreach Coordinator. As part of the Economic Empowerment Team, Grace recruits volunteers and meals for the Getting Ahead program and is building a network of local partners passionate about helping families escape poverty. 

Grace has a bachelor’s business degree with a minor in accounting from UNC-Charlotte and volunteers as a Church Mission Lead at New Generation Missionary Baptist Church, where she has helped direct outreach initiatives since 2003. 

In 2020, Grace launched Styles by Grace, an interior design and styling business. After her sister began her journey toward a double lung transplant, she founded My Sista’s Purse in January 2022, a nonprofit organization to help transplant patients. 

“My philosophy is simple: create opportunities for people to rise above their circumstances, break through economic barriers, and experience transformative growth,” she said. “I have a heart for service and want that to be evident in everything I do. I’m committed to making a lasting difference in the lives of families and individuals, helping them to not only survive but thrive.”

She’s a mother of three daughters and she and husband, Gary, are “Papa & Memaw” to 5 granddaughters and 4 grandsons.  

You can reach Grace by emailing EmpowermentOutreach@CommonHeart.org