Family Of Lost Daughter, OKC Metro Nonprofit Team Up To Fund Food Kitchen

An Oklahoma City metro nonprofit aimed at helping unhoused youth is honoring a 16-year-old girl by naming its brand new food kitchen after her.

After Grace Roark died in an automobile wreck in 2017, her family said she was known for doing everything possible to help others.

“When she passed away, we heard all kinds of stories," Grace's mother Betsy Roark said. "We heard 'Grace used to buy my student lunch when she couldn’t afford it, Grace took me to get groceries on her lunch break.' We found out she was spending all of her money on other people and that’s just what she did." 

After her passing, Grace’s parents said they began volunteering at Sisu Youth Services to keep her memory alive. 

“As we lay the foundation for Sisu... we wanted to make sure the Roark family are at the center of that,” Sisu development director Aaron Wilder said.

However, both Sisu and the Roark Family said they need help to build and fill Grace’s Kitchen. 

“We are going to use this money to construct this facility, and make sure this kitchen is equipped with everything it needs,” Wilder said.

Construction is expected to wrap up by the end of 2023, and Sisu Youth Services will open the doors to the new facility by early 2024.

“It’s hard to fathom that our child is going to be remembered, and that her work is going to be passed on through other people,” Roark said.

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