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Grace (center), with her mom and grandfather

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.

The mansion, appropriately named, Grace's House, was built in 1893 and is located in the historic Hillside Avenue district. Nearly 20 New Jersey-based interior design businesses have been selected to participate in restoring the home back to its former glory.

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

The house will be for sale in Spring 2019, but before that the public will have the opportunity to tour approximately 20 of the house's rooms, nooks, stairways, landings and other spaces across three floors.

The Designer Showhouse is an opportunity to feature local designers' expertise as well as an interesting way for the public to support The Valerie Fund's mission. "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.

To see this amazing house transformation, self-guided tours of Grace's House will run every Thursday through Sunday from April 25 through May 19. 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.

If you are interested in a sponsorship, please visit: https://www.thevaleriefund.org/specials/showhouse/sponsors.php

If you are interested in advertising in the Grace's House Show House Program book, please visit: https://www.thevaleriefund.org/specials/showhouse/journal.php

Or contact Barbara Efchak at befchak@thevaleriefund.org or 973-761-0422.