Back Row: Kelly, Nathan, Andy, Jon, Dani
Second Row: Ben, Lindsey, Steve, Penny, Canaan
Front Row: Alison, Lily
Granny Grace-A True Granny Clown Who Cares About Kids.
Who is She and Where did She Come From?
When I was in first grade, my teacher complimented me by saying how expressive I was when I read my book out loud. I felt proud and worked to become the best reader I could be. As I grew I found I loved acting and would gather the neighborhood kids together to develop and perform variety shows during summer vacations.As a grown up, I taught Sunday school. I worked in Child Evangelism as a Good News Club Leader, teaching and entertaining as many as fifty children weekly after school at the Long Beach Elementary School in Boulder Hill. Later, I became a local speaker and bedside volunteer for Fox Valley Hospice. When I left there I worked as the Children’s Bereavement Director at Conley Funeral Home in Elburn from 1987-2001. While there I:
- Recruited and trained volunteers for four yearly support events for children
- Developed and directed retreats for bereavement volunteers.
- Expanded and maintained the children’s center
- Provided emergency intervention at the funeral home and local schools
- Provided non emergency intervention teaching situations in schools and preschools.
Much of my job included speaking with individuals and groups of children at the time of a loved ones’ death. I joined Mr. Bruce Conley, (well known for his caring intervention with grieving families and their children) the owner, in designing talks that would keep the children’s interest, using everyday words, concepts and stories they could understand. We customized these talks to the different children we were serving. One of my favorite props was a magic coloring book. The children loved it and I loved using it. When I left my job at Conleys, I became interested in presenting, fun educational programs for children. I went to the Merry Hearts Clown School in Yorkville and graduated in 2005. I named my clown character Granny Grace. I chose the name because I wanted my character to be especially attractive to kids because of the loving attributes of a granny figure. I added the name Grace because I believe God supplies all the grace that gives me wisdom, energy and skill to reach out to youngsters and help them make this world a better place.
I especially enjoy doing shows at preschools, libraries and churches. I still use my magic coloring book in many of my shows. There is plenty of interaction, stories, games and songs. Then one day, a friend said, “You ought to make a DVD.” So I did. I wrote a 50 minute show called What Clowns Like. I invited my family to help me. All five grandchildren perform in the show held before a live audience. My husband and our three sons set up lights, ran cameras and adjusted sound. When the taping was done, my first son, Nathan, edited the movie and made the trailer, my second son Jon, with my husband, Steve, did the technical arrangements for the Granny Grace web site and Andy my third son worked the sound. Steve worked long hours to bring the DVD to its full potential; He also did the artwork required using Jon’s conception of the design for the box and disc.
I would love to come to your organization to present a FREE talk about How to be a hero to kids, what to say to kids when someone dies or How to answer kid questions about spiritual concepts.
Call Penny Halder at 630.859.3099
Also serving Aurora, Oswego, Yorkville, Plainfield, North Aurora, Batavia, Geneva, Naperville and surrounding communities.
