Libby, Katie Raye, and Mary Kate

What did you spend your summer days doing as a seven year-old? Most kids are busy jumping off the diving board or playing hopscotch, but Katie Raye has been hard at work making “crafts for a cause.” 

Katie Raye comes from a long line of women who love to serve. Her mom, Mary Kate, has encouraged her to help with Operation Christmas Child, Giving Hope, and a lemonade stand for world missions. Her grandmother, Libby, has been a volunteer with Red Mountain Grace for the past five years. 

In 2017, Libby found an article about Red Mountain Grace and fell in love with the idea of welcoming strangers in need of hospitality housing into her city. She loved the aspect of introducing familiarity into unfamiliar situations for others.

She jumped in head-first and began visiting families staying in RMG apartments. Libby, and all of our volunteers, are examples of what makes RMG different. Our guests are not just patients coming to Birmingham for treatment, they quickly become friends.

Both Katie Raye and Libby embrace the unique mission of RMG. While Katie Raye loves that, “every bracelet [she makes] is different,” Libby loves that, “Every family [RMG serves] is different because you never know who can come to town,” to support the patient. 

When it was feasible to visit patients in the hospital before COVID, Libby went to pray with them to help them feel better. “There are patients that are so easy to bond with and you get to know them beyond their diagnosis. You also get to see a glimpse of who they were before all of this. You kind of feel like you become an extended part of their family.” 

Luckily, there are many ways to support RMG’s mission regardless of age. You can purchase a bracelet handmade by Katie Raye here and sign up to volunteer like Libby here. We are grateful for the impact they have already made on this organization and look forward to seeing how they continue to support our mission.