The Valerie Fund News
The Valerie Fund presents Grace’s House, A Designer Showhouse Restoration of historic Plainfield mansion will benefit children in our area battling cancer and blood disorders
Maplewood, N.J. January 14, 2019 – In May of 2018, nine year-old Grace received a devastating diagnosis: she had a Germ Cell Brain Tumor. Grace's treatment brought her to The Valerie Fund Children's Center at Newark Beth Israel and after rounds of chemotherapy and radiation, she is recovering well. Her grateful family sought ways to give back to the organization that was taking such good care of their daughter and granddaughter. Last June, they spearheaded an extraordinary fundraising effort during The Valerie Fund's annual 5K Run and Walk in Verona Park, Verona, NJ raising close to $32,000. Grace's grandfather, Dan Reichard, a builder and principle of ER Development was interested in collaborating further with The Valerie Fund. He and his partners Thomas and George Allen purchased a 7,000+ square foot Colonial Revival in Plainfield, NJ restoring original elements and preparing it for featured designers to showcase their visions.
Christened Grace's House, the mansion is located in the historic Hillside Avenue district and will eventually be for sale, but in Spring 2019, the public will have the opportunity to tour approximately 20 of the house's rooms, nooks, stairways and other spaces across three floors.
Interior Design businesses selected to participate in bringing this very special home back to its former glory include:
AK Design Studios, Monsey, NY
ANEW Kitchen and Bath Design, Plainfield, NJ
B-garcia designs, Montclair, NJ
Butter and Velvet Home Designs, Denville, NJ
California Closets, Fairfield, NJ
CD Interiors, Manalapan Township, NJ
The French Martini, Westfield, NJ
Gail Davis Designs, South Orange, NJ
Global Home Interior Design, Princeton, NJ
Images in Design, Cranford, NJ
JAB Design Group, Penn Valley, PA
JMW Interiors, Millburn, NJ
Liepold Design Group, Millburn, NJ
Marina V. Design Studio, Ridgewood, NJ
Mendham Interiors, Mendham, NJ
Mimi & Hill, Westfield, NJ
Samuel Robert Signature Spaces, Millburn, NJ
Swati Goorha Designs, New Providence, NJ
Tina Ramchandani Creative, New York
"Building a Brighter Future for The Valerie Fund Kids." Proceeds from public and private tours of the showhouse as well as ad journal sales and sponsorships will benefit The Valerie Fund's Green Light Initiative, a $5,000,000 Capital Campaign. This initiative is the most ambitious chapter in The Valerie Fund's history to date, poised to extend "next generation care" to thousands of children fighting life-threatening diseases.
The Valerie Fund is proud to recognize Design NJ as a media sponsor, Holby Valve, Coughlin Duffy LLP, Stephen and Tina Squeri as sponsors and Worldwide Wholesale Floor Coverings as a sponsor and a designer resource. Generous in kind sponsors already committed to the project include Benjamin Moore, Dente Trading Classic & Luxury Stone, Swarovski and Window Works.
At The Valerie Fund each year, Grace and 6,000 other precious children benefit immeasurably by receiving their medical treatment close to home in a child-centered environment. Individualized support from an entire psychosocial team – Integrative and Palliative Care specialists, Psychologists, Social workers, Child Life specialists and Educational liaisons -- makes sure their quality of life is the best it can possibly be without regard to insurance reimbursements. And Grace's favorite – Camp Happy Times, is a free one week overnight summer camp for children with cancer.
To see the amazing house transformation, self-guided tours of Grace's House will begin Thursday, April 25 through Sunday, May 19th. Tickets for the house tours are $30 on The Valerie Fund website https://www.thevaleriefund.org/specials/showhouse/tickets.php and $35 at the door.
Back to News Main Page