Grace Lee / The Glee Suite

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Cambridge, MA
Grace Lee / The Glee Suite

Marketing, Communications, & Fundraising for Nonprofits and Small Businesses. I also post thoughts on work, faith, recovery from perfectionism/people pleasing.

I help executives/solopreneurs feel less overwhelmed and focus on what matters to them. 🦸‍♀️Marketing & Communications for Overwhelmed Nonprofits & Small Biz
💭 Thoughts on life, relationships, faith, fitness, low waste lifestyle
👋 Enneagram 1w2

02/01/2026

For the last 3 years I've declared that I'm never getting involved in church again after going through deep church hurt and disillusionment and a faith crisis. Last summer, something started to change in my heart as I engaged more and more with a new church I found.

First it was joining a small group and actually wanting to be there. Then it was signing up for a community service event without thinking twice. In our small group the Bible came alive in our study of Ephesians and I got a new perspective of how much God loved the church and his hopes for what it could be. During a sermon series about church community, I started to believe that it was important to keep showing up on Sundays and learn how to be in community with ALL of God's people (not just the ones I liked).

I kept finding myself in situations where I would ask myself, "Who are you?!" Sometimes my husband would say the same thing or raise an eyebrow after I said something that was the complete opposite of everything I said before.

Today I joined the welcome team and had another surreal "who are you" moment. I felt so much joy! This was something I truly did not imagine ever happening again, especially after feeling deeply used in my past church.

There's a super upbeat song that we sing at church and I weep every time we get to the chorus because I am the new person in that song who has done a 180 and has a new name. I am free! (Lyrics in comments).

3 years ago, I hoped that someday I would see the church the way God does and overcome my feelings of repulsion and disillusionment, but thought it would take many years to get there. I could never imagine that I would get there this fast.

If you are in a hard place with the church and feel like a wanderer in the desert, I hope you don't give up. Keep showing up even when you don't feel like it and see what God will do. I hope you experience healing, redemption, and freedom along the way, and that you find a healthy church where you can grow and be known.

**I know the church has long been a place of deep hurt and trauma so I also understand if it's no longer for you, no matter what. ❤️

01/29/2026

Earlier this month one of my dreams came true when I played pond hockey. It checked off so many high value things for me - being active, being outdoors, making the most of winter, doing something thrilling/a little scary, and connecting with community. Next hockey dream: score during a real game!

01/19/2026

The truth is, I wrote these goals in February 2025 and didn't look at them again until a week ago. Initially, I was afraid to look at them, thinking I probably didn't get any of them but turns out I hit most of them!

I'm so proud of myself for exercising my agency and making my desires happen as best as I could in a manageable way, grateful for the privilege of health and my amazing support systems and community, and God's grace in making all of this possible.

Personally, 2025 was probably the best year of my life. I still have so much to work on but am going into 2026 with a hopeful and motivated heart.

Thanks for following my journey! If you set goals, I would love to hear how you did and what you learned!

12/02/2025

During these uncertain economic times, nonprofits need our help more than ever! I've had the greatest privilege and honor of working with some spectacular organizations that are truly transforming lives and communities. I believe in their work at my core and have personally made donations to all of them.

Today, you're invited to step outside of the consumerism and inward focus that often overtakes us this time of the year (myself included!) and lift up the millions of organizations and their staff who are committed to doing work that serves people day in and day out, in good and bad times.

I hope you'll take a couple minutes to learn about the organizations that I've partnered with in the past couple years in marketing, communications, fundraising, and events. If any of their missions resonate with you, please consider making a donation to encourage them! As someone who works directly with executive directors, I can attest that a donation of any size really makes a difference and provides a big boost to these hardworking nonprofit leaders any time of the year.

You can also support your favorite organization by sharing about their work and giving them a follow 🫶

What nonprofits do you love? Please tell us more about them in the comments below so we can spread the word! ⬇️

If you lead an organization that needs help with effective marketing + beautiful and impactful design that leads to increased revenue, engagement, brand awareness, and most importantly – peace of mind and relief for you, I’m here to help! 💜

Orgs featured:
Route One Ministry

Barbara C. Harris Camp & Conference Center
Wonder Aloud
Be Free Ministries
Emmanuel Gospel Center (EGC)

11/18/2025

I had SO. MUCH. FUN. and joy! working with my longtime friend Juan to reimagine his website and infuse it with life. Juan is an artist and educator based in Boston and the creator of , a colorful, chaotic universe that is deeply profound once you get to know the personal stories behind each piece.

For years, Juan's website didn’t reflect the vibrant world of Juantopia or his own personality and spirit. And he felt at a loss for what to do about it, so his website stayed the same for a long time.

We worked together to bring Juan's vision to life and give his art the proper spotlight it deserves. Plus, we made sure it marketed his work and made it extra easy for fans to support and amplify his art.

This quote from Juan is everything I want for my clients: "After Grace's redesign, I can't stop looking at my website and find myself looking forward to adding more content to it.”

Every design project I do is so much more than just changing how something looks and making it look nice. It's equally important to me that the client feels empowered and excited about what their work and mission is communicating to the world.

Congrats Juan on your new website! May this be the first step of many toward broadening your reach and recognition.

Please follow and support Juan’s work or juantopia.com!

Does your website tell a clear story with messaging and design that instantly connects with your audience and leads to action? Or do you need help getting it to a place where you actually want to update it? Let's chat! I'd love to help you get there.

11/16/2025

Maybe you know that fundraising and development have been a part of my work for the last 20 years. But do you know how it all started?

A few weeks ago, I got to celebrate the person who was a critical part of my fundraising career at the retirement party for Dana Wade, my former boss at Emmanuel Gospel Center who served as the Development Director for 23 years. Under her leadership, she gave a fresh college grad (me!) with no development experience the opportunity to design print and digital newsletters and annual reports, produce our annual fundraiser event, lead our website redesign, get a taste of what goes into capital campaigns, and learn best practices for donor relations and operations. For two fall seasons, I even served as Interim Development Director!

Dana taught me that fundraising isn't simply about asking for money -- it's about getting to know people authentically and connecting them with ways to act on what matters to their heart. Those early opportunities and that foundational philosophy for why we really do this now form the backbone for how I help nonprofits with marketing, communications, and events -- all with a fundraising mindset.

It's been so exciting and joyful to be back in the fundraising world. I forgot how much I loved this work and how naturally it applies my own values of relationship building and connecting people with what they care about in practical ways.

Thank you Dana for all the ways you supported and trusted me by giving me space and opportunities to explore, fail, and grow, and for igniting a passion I didn't know I had. What an honor and privilege to celebrate your big milestone and stay connected after all these years. I'm wishing you all the best in this new season!

10/10/2025

2 years! 🤯🎉 I'm more grateful than ever and can't believe that I get to do what I do.

This past year, I've had the privilege of partnering with more executive directors, solopreneurs, and founders doing work that transforms people and communities. From helping an organization launch a website and rebrand to usher in a new season of impact while honoring their history, to redesigning a website for an artist whose work and the heart behind it deserved so much more than the unused website that he hadn't touched in years because he felt stuck on how to take next steps...
..To overseeing and producing year-end appeals and events that increased revenue for nonprofits. And hearing about the newfound relief and freedom EDs experienced compared to when they were running the same events by themselves. I wrote emails that sounded exactly like my clients—without them having to write a word. And I loved designing annual reports, speaker sheets, landing pages, and social media content that looked as good as the work it represented.

*But here's what I really do: I give people their time and energy back.*

The best part of my job isn't what I produce (though I do love building solutions that lead to greater impact and effective messaging). It's when a client tells me how much better they feel even just after a conversation with me. Or how they can relax knowing that someone else is holding all the details they once held on their own. Or when they can't believe how I brought to life exactly what they had in mind, without having to explain it to me. It's when they see what we've created together and realize they have a partner they can trust—someone who gets it, who cares, and who doesn't need their hand held through every decision.

To everyone who let me into their vision this year: thank you for trusting me with the work that matters to you. 🫶🥹 It's an honor to work with you and increase the visibility and impact of all the amazing work you're doing in this world. I don't take the gift of our partnership lightly.

Here's to year 3—less stress, more impact, and partnerships that make the hard work feel a little lighter!

09/15/2025

At the end of September 2024, I told my therapist that weird things had been happening and my brain felt broken. I couldn’t sleep at night because I felt wide awake. Instead of feeling exhausted during the day, I felt extra awake and alert, even without coffee.

The weird stuff: I lost my wallet but had a feeling it was somewhere in my house and was losing my mind trying to find it. One late night, I almost caused a very bad car accident and the driver followed me for a while, which scared the crap out of me.

I also recounted how my kid had gotten really sick during the first week of school, which kept her home for a week and involved a trip to the doctor. And for weeks I had relentlessly but unsuccessfully tried to resolve incorrect charges and contract issues with our vacation membership, on top of having buyers remorse for said membership.

We did an Internal Family Systems exercise (think of it like addressing the parts in Riley’s brain in Inside Out) to try to figure out what was happening. I realized that these parts of me had been working in overdrive all month: hypervigilance (hence feeling wide awake 24/7), perfectionism, fear, and a part that wants control/efficiency/getting the best value.

As I thanked my parts for how they tried to help me survive and reminded them that we don’t have to live this way, I also found myself telling them, “I don’t have to hold it all together and get it right.” It was a moment of parenting my younger self who had believed otherwise my entire life, and taking hold of my agency in this present life.

If you have been feeling a little or a lot overwhelmed, unsettled, or stressed–I hope this helps you enter the 2nd half of September with lightness. Take some deep breaths, remind yourself that it’s ok if things aren’t perfect, try to let some balls drop, and give yourself permission to not do things in your most ideal way. I'll be trying my best to do it too!

Epilogue: This September, I’ve had my fair share of first world problems, sickness, and stressors, but I *think* I’m doing ok. Hooray for growth!

07/24/2025

POV: The moment one of your personal/professional dreams comes true, and realizing that one person keeps making these "I never imagined this would happen" moments possible by seeing your potential before you do.

Two years ago, I made a goal of getting better at public speaking and getting over how terrifying it felt when I did it, and how cringey and awkward I imagined I came across. Two weeks ago, I did the announcements at the Abide Gathering in front of 75 people, and I can barely believe the person I became in just a few days.

When David (Abide's founder) first asked me to do the announcements, I told him my feelings about public speaking. But he assured me that I would do a good job, so I tried to believe him, while telling myself that this time I would try to be my most authentic self—potentially awkward comments and all—and trust that that was ultimately going to be the magic sauce for doing this well.

By the last day of the event, I went from becoming someone who was doing "calm down" tactics before going on the stage to someone who felt zero nervousness about it and who went beyond just narrating the announcements by also responding to what was happening in the room in a personal and vulnerable way. Public speaking no longer became purely a performance where I felt like I was having an out of body experience, completely disconnected from myself.

In 2023, David took a chance on me by hiring me as I was just starting my business in a pretty fragile state. Months later, he gave me the opportunity to be a speaker at the 2024 Abide Gathering so I could tell the story of my midlife crisis/healing journey. Then this year he asked me to do something I could only dream of being good at someday, in the far off future.

There are no words for what it feels like to be on the receiving end of someone continuing to see your potential year after year, when you can't see it yourself. I still can't believe that I get to work with Abide and that my role expands each year! With another gathering in the books and our 5th gathering ahead, here's to seeing where the next year takes us! 🎉

Who's someone who saw your potential before you did? Tag them below!

06/09/2025

OMG I got the Hustle Hat for tonight's hockey game!!!! Did not ever expect to earn this but proud of myself for sticking with this sport and doing what I can to improve my game!

Gooooo Skyrats!

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Cambridge, MA
02139

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http://www.gleehelps.com/

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