Personal Stories of Impact with Grace Milligan (Ep.19)

Welcome to Ideas by Mike, the podcast with Mike Milligan, where you will find one-of-a-kind financial planning advice for your one-of-a-kind life. With over 22 years of experience as a Certified Financial Planner, Mike shares experiences and advice on crafting simple, easy-to-understand financial plans based on your values and priorities. He believes that taking a personalized approach is the best way to prepare for the future and give meaning to your finances. So, follow along as Mike, and from time to time, his guests, explore different strategies and tools that could help you secure your financial future in retirement. Now, onto the show.

Hello, and welcome to the Ideas by Mike podcast with your host, Mike Milligan. I'm Wendy McConnell. Hey, Mike, how are you?

And I'm doing great. Here we are in 2025, and I will tell you, Wendy, this is probably one of the more exciting yet nervous podcast episodes I've ever brought to life.

But I've been on every one, Mike.

I don't know what you mean. I know, but, you know, it's because Grace is here with us.

Oh, you mean her?

Yeah, yeah. Grace is, uh, Grace is my middle child. I have, uh, as many people have heard me talk about before, I have 3 kids. I have I have Zach, who, uh, is married to Haley, and they blessed us with Daniel, our grandson, who's absolutely awesome. Grace, uh, is the middle child. She's, uh, she's amazing, and we're gonna talk about her. And we have Paige, who is still in college right now, uh, who's gonna, um, who's gonna just do absolutely amazing things. There are 3 wonderful kids, 4 when you include my daughter-in-law. But, uh, but, you know, our mission at Ideas by Mike is to is to help those who don't fit the mold of the traditional financial planning world so that together we can make an impact. And, um, Grace is— uh, Zach is making an impact in the medical community, no doubt about that. And, uh, and, uh, Haley is making an impact, you know, in the homeschool community and with, uh, our son, our grandson Daniel. And Paige is going to have an amazing impact. She already has when she made that trip around the world. But Grace is living it.

Right.

Right. She is the child that lives. So, you know, I'm looking forward to hearing her talk about what impact means to her. And, uh, and then we're gonna— we'll talk a little bit of finances today. We're gonna talk a little bit about where she's making her impact now. So it's— I can't wait to hear, uh, my little matured, uh, girl who I still think she's like 4 years old riding the tricycle. around and hear her be the adult, the amazing adult she has become.

Well, Grace, welcome to the show. Thank you for being here.

Thank you so much for having me, Wendy and Mike.

With that buildup, my goodness.

What an intro.

She just loved saying Mike too.

Yeah, she does, right? You know, it wasn't Dad there. Did you hear that? So easily, she just popped out Mike.

This is gonna be fun. I cannot wait to get started. So, Grace, I'm going to start out with asking you something that Your father likes to ask a lot of people. Okay, Grace, what is it that makes you one of a kind?

Awesome question, Wendy. Thank you. Um, what makes me one of a kind is my story. And this question was really hard for me to get an answer because in the nonprofit world where I work in, we try not to think of ourselves. We try not to think of what makes us one of a kind. We're always looking to serve. So it was a hard question for me to answer, but I asked one of my friends and this is what we came up with. What makes me one of a kind is I see things differently than most people. I see trash and there's a purpose for it. Resources, there's a purpose for it. Where some people might harp on the negative, I try and spin an event or a person in a positive light. For example, this summer, One of my coworkers mentioned that Graceland Community, where I work, did not have a fly swatter. So it was my mission that day to make a fly swatter. As a nonprofit, we got to be super stewardess of all our resources. So we— why go buy a fly swatter when you can make one? So it was my mission. I first, I went straight to the trash can and I picked out A cleaning bottle, a plastic number 2 cleaning bottle with a big flat side. And I was like, okay, perfect. This is the head of the flyswatter. Then I went down to our give and take room, it kind of like our free thrift store area, and found a wire hanger. And me and my friend set out creating a flyswatter that day. So we took that wire hanger, broke it in half, twisted it into a handle, cut out the flat side of the cleaning bottle, and drilled holes in it.

Dang.

Duct taped it together, and that afternoon we killed 3 flies. So it worked immediately. But where other people might have seen, oh, we don't have a fly swatter, let me go buy one, let me go— they're only a couple dollars. I saw an opportunity to not only save money but to twist the situation. We're saving things from the trash at the same time we're solving a problem.

Grace, I can literally see you doing this, right?

It was so fun.

Having seen, having seen you grow up, right, and just like how resourceful you have always been, uh, how much, uh, and how much you like to hold on to your pennies, right? You don't like to spend anything at all, right? I just see that. Now, I, I know, I think, I think I know the answer to this, but I don't think a lot of people know this. Um, about you is that you've always had this desire to impact, right? To be different.

Mm-hmm.

Wendy, when Grace was in college, she played college soccer at the University of Lynchburg. And, uh, on her, on her profile page, you know, you have to list on there what, uh, what you want to be, right? What your career aspirations are. You know, people would put physical therapists, you know, You know, nurse, doctor, teacher. Grace, what did you put on your profile?

Word for word, my career aspiration is to save the Earth.

And so when I saw that her freshman year, I was like, you know, the Avengers Marvel movies were very big when she, when she was in college. I'm like, so Grace, you want to be an Avenger, right? And she goes, Dad, no, no, I just want to, I want to make an impact. But Grace, when did you— Grace, when did you really know that you wanted to make an impact?

I think I knew very, very early on that I wanted to make an impact. Um, I think it's like a God-given desire in me that I want to make an impact. And there's one story from my childhood that I'd love to share. Dad, you probably remember this. One of the first times we went to the lake house with Nanny and Papa Gibb, We went fishing. This was the first time I was ever going to go fishing. And Papa Gibb pulled out that tube of worms that you put on the hook.

Live worms. Yeah, live worms.

Live worms. Live worms. He took that worm out, he cut it in half, he stuck it on a hook, and we were supposed to drown it and let the fish eat it. Like, to me as a little 5, 6-year-old, I could not wrap my head My mind around that. It seemed cruel to the worm. So my Papa Gib, being a strong but gentle man, he gave me one worm. He said, okay, Grace, you don't have to fish, but here's this one worm. Take care of the worm for the whole day. So that was my mission. The worm survived, but then I had to go to bed. So left the worm outside in the little— in the sand by the door. Woke up the next morning. And the worm was all dried out. And it made me so sad. I cried about this little worm. But looking back on that, that was my way to impact that worm's life, the family right there. I knew early on that it was my job to save the Earth. And it's all our jobs to save the Earth. But I knew that that's what I was uniquely called to because of this little worm. Like, it's a little— Nominal funny story, but the worm's life mattered in my little mind, and they still matter.

So do you eat fish still, Grace?

I do eat fish. And I do fish. Yes, I do fish. So no hate to fishing, but I just buy not live bait.

She doesn't care about flies though. She— they're okay.

They're all—

no, they're off limits.

Flies, no. No flies.

Grace has always— I mean, it's interesting that she told the lake story. She's always loved the water, right? I, I remember, Grace, I remember, uh, your senior project when you were in high school, you hopping in a canoe and going and picking up just bags and bags of trash out of the, out of the river.

Yeah, right, the Elizabeth River, right there in our backyard.

Yeah, just right in the backyard, just going and just going to take care of stuff. She's always had this desire to kind of to always do things just a little bit different. Uh, Grace, one of my favorite stories of you is, uh, is how hard you work to do things, right? Um, you, you know, you were, uh, you loved soccer, right? But were you, but were you always the best player on the field?

No, I was never the best. I was never the fastest, never the strongest. the best shot. I was never the best at any aspect.

Yeah. How, how many years were you captain of your college soccer team? You went to school for 4 years. How many years were you captain?

Junior and senior year, so 2 years.

Right. Not the best, right? But you just lead and you impact, right? Where do you, where do you, where do you get that desire to— I mean, how do you just— how does that just happen, right? How does people just gravitate to you? Do you know? Do you even know?

That's a fantastic question. I'll probably have to think more about it, but I definitely think it's my nature and my nurture. So naturally, I think I was born to be a leader. I was called to be a leader. God gave me this desire to be a leader, but also because of my circumstances in the past. I've always been kind of an introverted leader, but a leader by example. Then people will follow me. And yeah, that sounds a little selfish. Did that sound selfish?

No, it's okay. I mean, I, I have the saying that I am the most humble man in the world from time to time, right? Which is that— which that you're really not humble if you have to call yourself the most humble man, right? It's just a little joke, Grace. You know that.

Okay.

Uh, but like, Grace, so let's talk about— can we talk about Grace Klein? So—

Love to.

So Wendy, uh, and this may be news to Grace Klein folks when they hear this too, um, Grace is working at Grace Klein Community in Birmingham, Alabama. Their primary mission— I'm not going to steal her whole thunder, but their primary mission is to feed Birmingham. Um, and, uh, but Grace, uh, took this job as an intern this summer. She graduated from college. She— last summer, she, she was driving down there. Grace calls me, I think it was 10 minutes Before you get to Birmingham. Grace, do you remember what you told me when you called me?

Yes. So I had driven 12 hours from Norfolk to Birmingham. I'm 10 minutes away from their house. I just got off I-20 and I called Dad and I'm like, what am I doing? Like, what? What am I? I've never been to Alabama before and I'm supposed to be here for 3 months. I knew no one. I knew no places. Like, I'd never been there before. I barely knew who I was living with. And Dad was just like, just feel it out. You'll be okay. Like, the Lord will be with you. So, and I'm so glad. I'm so glad. Like, we took that risk. It's been the best.

I think I think I said, Grace, I can be to you in seven hours. I think that's what I said.

Something like that.

Yeah. Do this. I can get there in seven hours if I have to.

Was that the first time you felt any fear about the situation, Grace? Because I think I would have felt it long before the. 10 minutes before I arrived.

Yeah, well, to me it was like a new experience. I'm gonna go do this. But then I think the reality of it set in in those next 10 minutes. Like, I'm gonna go meet all these people at the new place. And just my eyes got so big and I started like tearing up. But I got there and they were the most welcoming people ever. I got there and they literally had a welcome party waiting for me. Oh, I know, it's so sweet. Like, immediately, and I was like, yep, this is where I'm supposed to be.

So Grace, we'd love for you to talk about Grace Klein, right? Um, before you tell us all about Grace Klein, right, uh, you went there as an intern, and how long were you there before you knew that you wanted to be there much longer? Was it a week, a day, a month?

It was about 3 and a half to 4 weeks before I had the first conversation with Jenny, our founder, about, hey, what would it look like if I stayed? Because I was an intern, and I didn't know that there was a job opportunity past an internship. So I had to step out in faith and be like, hey, Jenny, what would it look like if I stayed? And she actually was like, we've been praying for 6 months for you to stay. And we have a job waiting for you. It is yours to take it if you want. But we couldn't tell you that because we didn't want to— change your mind on anything. We wanted you to hear from the Lord if this was the place that you were supposed to be, but we want you to stay, so stay.

I would love it. So tell us, so tell us about Grace Climb. Tell us, tell us like what you do there. Well, tell us about the bigger, the bigger picture of who Grace Climb is and tell us what you do.

Yes. So Grace Climb Community is a nonprofit located in Birmingham, Alabama. Their mission and vision and purpose is to share resources to build relationships. So for us, that looks like sharing food, clothes, shoes, diapers, school supplies, Christmas toys. We just supplied Christmas toys for hundreds of kids in Birmingham. But our biggest initiative is called Feed BHM, and this is where we rescue good food out of the landfill to feed the plates of people in need. So Panera, for example, bakes bread daily. At the end of the day, all the bread that they don't sell, they have to get rid of it somehow. So they can either throw it in the trash can or they can give it to us. And our mission is to turn around the next day and give it away to people in need. And through this rescuing food out of the landfill and feeding the hungry, we feed 20,000 people a week. in the greater Birmingham area.

Wow.

Yeah, we've rescued over 2 million pounds of food this way doing that.

How long has Jenny and Grace Klein been doing this?

Yes. So Grace Klein has been around since about 2009, 2010, when Jenny basically got a vision from the Lord saying like, this is what you need to do. But we really took off in 2020 with COVID Oh, wow.

Now, you guys, it's just not Birmingham, right? Don't you guys— when I went to visit you, you showed me this map, right? Like, how far out are you guys going?

I believe we have a reach in 40 counties in Alabama. So we, yeah, we give food to 20,000 people a week, and lots of people come to us, and then they take food and go impact that community. So it's kind of like a chain, like the Publix gives us food, and then we give these people food, and then these people give those people food. And it's like this beautiful chain of saving food from the landfill and feeding people who are in need.

Wow, it's amazing.

Yeah, yeah.

Uh, and so like when you say you save it from the landfill, I mean, you guys aren't taking it out of the garbage, you're just taking it from—

No, no, no, no, no.

Where it's no longer useful and then redistributing it, right?

Yeah. And then what I do at Grace Klein Community, I am the sustainability liaison. Super fancy title, it's awesome. Um, but I help a lot with resource management So trying to get the food not in the landfill. So we try to give it to people first, and then we have a local network of farmers who we give the food to. And if it's too bad for the animals, we compost it. I'm 50% external and 50% internal. So internal, I'm helping with those resources, the systems in place. I'm helping get volunteers and serve teams. Externally, I'm on the development team. So I'm looking for donors.

Donors? Oh, you're looking for people to get money?

Yes, I am.

It's awesome. So like Grace Klein has huge impact, right? You don't— it's so like, Wendy, um, you know, Ideas by Mike operates around the country, and, uh, just recently we had a new client that actually lived in Birmingham, and I mentioned to her that Grace works at Grace Klein. And she just stopped and said, they impacted me, right? And then she said, she said, I'd like to meet your daughter, right? And so like, when Grace comes back, you know, when she comes back after break, like after she gets back there in the spring, she's going to be and meet with this person who we've been connected, which leads me to like how Grace actually got connected with Grace Klein. Uh, you want to talk about Grace? How many, how many job interviews did you have, right, when you were, when you were graduating college?

Maybe a couple, but really Grace Klein was the only, the only answer, like the only way, because I was— can I go into the whole story?

You, you can, but hold on, hold on one second. I want to ask you one more question before you go in the whole story.

Go for it.

Were, were you like a thank you laudy graduate of University of Lynchburg, or were you like a with honors type of graduate?

With highest honors.

In the business school, where did you rank in the business school?

Number 1 in all the graduating seniors.

And you had, you had not very many interviews, right?

No, I did not.

So tell the story, like how you got connected This is like one of the best— great, uh, Wendy, of like— I— you think I tell good stories? Grace has some of the most powerful stories of any 23-year-old I've ever met in my life. And I mean, I'm so proud of her as a daughter, but like, I just— her stories are of like how things get laid out in front of her are so powerful. So Grace, how did Grace Klein happen?

Yes, I love the story. This is one of my favorite stories to tell. So January my senior year. I have no jobs lined up. I'm graduating in 5, 6 months, and I got nothing lined up. On the other side of the world, in South Africa, my sister, traveling the world doing service and missions work, ends up in, uh, J-Bay, South Carolina— Jeffreys Bay, little tiny town— um, working at a little tiny ministry. At the same time she's there, Pages that are January, February. Jenny from Grace Clan Community, our founder, is also there, same missionary spot. Jenny went for Christmas, was supposed to leave at Christmas, but the Lord told her to stay for 2 extra months. For whatever reason, she stayed for 2 months. My sister— so my sister could be anywhere in the world, and Jenny wasn't supposed to be in South Africa at this time, and they meet. Late one night, Jenny and Paige are having a conversation. And Jenny basically says, we have a nonprofit called Grace Klein Community. And we are looking for someone who loves the earth and loves Jesus. And my sister was like, man, do I have the person for you. So over on the other side of the world, my sister is networking for me. Me and Jenny meet over WhatsApp. And she says, hey, you should apply for an internship. And I'm like, okay, but I'm looking for a job and not really an internship. But my prayer during that season— so for the next 4 months, the Lord was like lining everything up. And my prayer in this season, last semester of college, is, Lord, make it so obvious where you want me to go that I can't deny it and close Every other door besides the one you want me to go. So even though I really wasn't looking for an internship, he was closing all these other doors for the job. So like, I would send my resume in somewhere and get like one step, and then never get an interview. Or applied for my dream job up in DC and was probably a little overqualified, and they didn't take me. So the Lord was just closing doors right behind me. But this little internship down in Birmingham, Alabama said yes to me, said, hey, we want you, come down for an internship. So I said, okay, it's 3 months, why not? That sounds fun. So I went and 3 weeks in, the Lord was just like, yeah, this is where you're supposed to be. And I took that step of faith saying, hey, what would it look like if I stayed? They said, we have a job. We've been praying for you since I met your sister in South Africa. So for those 6 months, um, they'd been praying for me to come and stay, which is wild.

It is wild, Grace. That's, uh, like how that all happened for you is amazing. And, and I did want to talk about finances today, but we're— we, we won't have time. We'll come back and do this again. Okay, right. Uh, is there like— if there were people in Birmingham, right, who are listening Mm-hmm. What would you tell them about Grace Klein? Or what would you tell them about getting involved? Or what would you tell them about you?

Right.

I would tell them to come hang out with us at Grace Klein. Just come for a day, come volunteer, hang out with our staff, and just watch the little Jesus miracles that happen all around. Because it really is like there are little miracles that happen every single day. Because our staff, we try and like die to ourselves every day so that we can serve these people. I tell us to come hang out with us, follow us on social media. If you feel so inclined, donate. We're a nonprofit, so we always need monetary donations and in-kind donations. Drop your clothes, your shoes, your extra food off with us. But honestly, we really would just love to build relationships with the people in Birmingham, with the people all around the world.

Yeah, we, uh, Grace, we ask that question to everybody about what makes you one of a kind, right?

Mm-hmm.

Like, you, you know this about me too, because you've, you've lived it for a good part of your life, is, uh, I like to celebrate everything, which is— which that's part of what makes you who you are too, because, you know, you've got, you got so much of your mother in you, but you've been impacted by me because we were the 2 most influential people in your life, right? And it's like one of the best mixes of a human being to be created, right? And you are, you are truly inspirational, right? This whole idea about making an impact and being one of a kind while you do it, uh, you're, you are saving the Earth. You just, you're doing it.

Thanks, Dad.

You are, you are doing it in Birmingham, right? And that, and if I, if I'm not mistaken, that is part of the Earth, right?

True.

Yeah.

Grace, is there anything else you want to tell people before we wrap up today?

Sure. Well, one of the questions that was sent to me in preparation was, do you have any fun stories about your dad? Oh, thank you, Nicole.

Do you want to share a fun story?

Yeah, there's a fun story that actually happened over Thanksgiving. that might give some light into Mike Milligan.

Do tell. I'm intrigued now.

Come back for part 2.

I'm kidding.

Okay. She's done.

She's good. She knows how to play the game.

She knows how to play this game, right? Go ahead, Grace. Give us the story.

Yeah. Okay. So Thanksgiving week, I come home. I have a bunch of college things that I was going to throw back in my car and drive to Grace Klein and donate them. Things that, uh, just we didn't need them anymore. And there were these 2 beanbags that my college roommate gave me. One is purple and one is pink, and they're big and they're awesome. And I knew that they were supposed to go to these 2 specific girls in Birmingham. I spent all week looking for them, climbed up in the attic, Could not find them at all. That's one story. 2 stories, and then they're gonna come together. The second story is me and my dad and Liana worked out, um, Thanksgiving morning together. He said, what are you doing today? I said, oh, my task is to make the broccoli casserole. And he goes, Grace, that's my favorite food! Can you make me just like a little portion? Um, and I said, uh, if we have leftovers, I would love to bring them over to you. Turns out we did have leftovers. So stuck it in a little to-go container, put it in the back of the fridge, waited till Saturday to come see my dad. Came see my dad. On the way out, I give him this broccoli casserole. I'm like, Dad, I gotta go. And he goes, okay, but first come look in my garage. Like, I have some extra college things of yours. Don't really know what to do with them. And I walk out and guess what's in the garage? The 2 beanbags that are supposed to go to these little girls. So like honored my dad through giving the broccoli casserole and he provided like the beanbags. He's always been a really good provider in life, like provided all of our needs, not all of our wants, but provided all of our needs. And I'm very thankful to him for that. But Dad, here's what you don't know is when I left the house with the beanbags, we stuffed them in the back of my car, left the house. I texted the mom Of the 2 girls saying, hey, I have these beanbags, um, and I think they're supposed to go to your girls. And she goes, Grace, yes, we would love them. The girls have been asking for beanbags. They've been asking for beanbags. And guess what the 2 girls' favorite colors are? One of their favorite colors is pink and the other one is purple. And those are like the exact, like the exact awesome beanbags that we had, like the colors, like they've been asking for them. And And they received them for Christmas.

I love it. I love it, Grace. That is a good story, right? And you are 100% right. It all happened because you made broccoli casserole, which is your favorite food, which is the miracle. Grace cooking is the miracle in this story, right? Grace, that's a good story. I cannot believe all those pieces fit together. That really—

It just fits.

And that's, and that's what it means to make an impact, right? You do it, you do it one person at a time. When you realize that people are one of a kind, right? Those girls, right, are getting those things. That's what they want, right? And, um, and those things were passed down from a couple of other girls who got, who got some good use out of them too. So that's awesome.

And I think, I think we really make an impact when we look beyond ourselves. Like, it's not just about us in this life. It's about like those relationships we create, right? So we make an impact when we look beyond us, when we serve and not be served.

Oh, that's good, Grace. Uh, Grace, how do people get a hold of Grace Klein? Like, how do they get in contact with you?

Yes. So they can go to our website. They can email info@gracekleincommunity.com, follow us on social media. But if you want to get in contact with me and talk all things the earth, I would love to nerd out with you. grace@graceklinecommunity. It's the awesomest email address ever. grace@graceklinecommunity.

I love that, Grace.

Yeah, I love the enthusiasm. It's contagious.

Yeah, I am not the namesake. I am not. It's just a very happy coincidence.

All right, Mike, so how do people get in touch with you if they have more questions?

Yeah, so like, if you have questions for us about how We can help you live the one-of-a-kind life you're meant to live by creating that one-of-a-kind financial plan. Because really, you know, even in Grace's situation, we had to, to get her to Birmingham. Like, our family had to create a one-of-a-kind financial plan to sustain her, right? And it's, uh, in Grace's, you know, if anybody works at a nonprofit, they know that that's not the most, uh, monetarily Uh, uh, it, it's— it doesn't benefit the people who work there the most, you know, for— from a dollar standpoint. It's what they get out of making the impact. So we have to do financial planning for Grace also in that. But like, if you need a financial plan that's one of a kind, uh, @ideasbymike on, um, Twitter, Instagram, uh, ideasbymike.com, or you can reach us at YouTube at Ideas by Mike. So, Grace, Grace, this is this was this was amazing, and you will be back for part two. There's no doubt.

Yes.

Thank you for having me, Mike and Wendy. This was lovely. We should definitely do a part two.

Sure.

In six months.

She does love that.

In six months, I'll have way more stories to share.

Can't wait.

We nobody can. We're all very anticipatory of what's about to happen. So thank you, Grace. Very nice to meet you. Thank you, Mike, and thank you for listening today. Please like, follow, and share this podcast with your friends. Until next time, I'm Wendy McConnell.

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