Meet Grace!

Hello! My name is Grace Longo! I am so overjoyed to be here in Rome to be a part of the Truth & Beauty Project's mission of evangelization!

Here is a small glimpse of where the Lord has taken my life the past few years.

I am from Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, born and raised. Yet even though I call Philly home, there was a part of our city that I didn’t know, that eventually changed the trajectory of my life. 

Kensington (Philadelphia) is known as the easiest, most accessible open-air drug market in the United States. It is an incredibly devastating area, overtaken by poverty, homelessness, and addiction. This place is where I came to know Christ. 

After many life-changing experiences serving in Kensington in high school, I felt a strong call from God on my life to serve full-time in the city. With the help of an awesome priest, who was a huge part of my faith journey, we started a full-time missionary program called Mission Youth Philly Apostles. I lived in community with two other women and we spent a year serving in the neighborhood in a variety of ways. We also were formed spiritually and learned how to live in community, which was a great gift.

It has been quite a journey since then. I have lived in Kensington at different times during the last few years, I have also worked alongside my Dad in his ministry. We have led retreats, speaking events, and guided adorations for high school students. It is a joy to do ministry alongside him!

This past year I have been living at the Blessed Sarnelli House in Kensington, which a ministry of presence to people struggling with homelessness, addiction, and abandonment. We serve through meals, clothing, consistent fellowship, and connection to resources to aid in detox, rehab, and recovery. We believe in spreading the Gospel message through prayer, hospitality, evangelization, and compassion. 

Kensington has truly changed my heart, my life, my perspective, and my relationship with God and others in countless ways.

While living there this year, I have been working at Annie’s Home, a maternity home for women who find themselves in crisis pregnancies and needing a place to live. The mission of Annie’s Home is to empower pregnant and parenting women to take positive and effective action on behalf of themselves and their children by providing them with physical, emotional, spiritual, and professional support.

I have also recently been back in school, studying social work with a specialty in trauma-informed care. My strongest passion is to accompany people in areas of deep suffering. Jesus Christ has changed and saved my life, and he continues to, and the way I have encountered Him most tangibly is through the vulnerability that comes through suffering. The most authentic beauty I have seen in this life has been hand in hand with suffering.

I love people, and I love our Lord, and I desire to love Him more. I believe that being a humble and curious student of others, ourselves, and of the world, leads to a beautiful and abundant life!

Some other things that bring so much joy to my life are writing, reading, running, fashion, art, singing, leading worship, good conversations, coffee with my both of my grandmas (my best friends) and quality time with my friends and family, just to name a few!