Grace Louise Newman was born on October 19, 1996, and passed away on August 5, 2024, at the age of 27. She leaves behind her parents, Todd and Linda Newman, big sister Madison, Granny Joann Newman, and aunts, uncles and cousins to carry on her incredible memory. She was preceded in death by her Grandpa Douglas Newman (Papa) and Grandma Grace and Grandpa Jim Scott.

Grace attended Highland Park High School and graduated in 2015. While in high school, she thrived in the school environment, excelled in academics and was captain of the Girls Golf Team. She was small in stature (not much bigger than her golf bag) but was fiercely competitive and could hit the ball a mile. She started golfing at the age of 6 and never lost her love for the sport. There was nothing she enjoyed more than all her golf friends, teammates and coaches.

Grace graduated Cum Laude from Wake Forest University in 2019 with degrees in Computer Science and Mathematics. During her Junior year, Grace studied abroad for a semester in Vienna, Austria, and traveled extensively throughout Europe with her friends. Grace was a member and officer of the Tri Delta sorority where she developed some of her deepest and most loving friendships. She was known as "Sweet Gracie" by all her friends.

Following college, Grace moved to Washington, D.C. where she was a technology consultant, most recently working with Booz Allen Hamilton. She loved putting her technology training to work and the independence of living on her own. From the time she was a little girl, Grace loved Washington, D.C. and was excited to be able to live and experience all the history and majesty of the city. She had an amazing group of friends in D.C., which made the experience that much more special.

Grace was a very joyful and spirited child, and loved dress up, dolls and make believe. She was clever, sassy, stubborn, funny and extremely sarcastic. Grace loved family. She adored her big sister Madison, and Madison so loved her back. Most special to Grace were family traditions - competitive Easter Egg hunts with Madison after church on Easter morning (even as 27- and 31- year-old adults), decorating Christmas cookies each and every year, playing Santa on Christmas and passing out all the presents, and spending time with cousins during the holidays. She loved family vacations, traveling internationally and particularly the trips to State and National Parks. She loved the beauty and wildlife of Yellowstone, the Grand Tetons, the Grand Canyon, Banff and Mt. Rushmore. But her favorite place in the entire world, and where she was most at peace, was Sedona. On golf vacations, she would always initiate the daily golf bets which would typically be who would be served breakfast in bed or pick the restaurant for dinner. One of the most anticipated family traditions was birthday dinners with extended family at Benihana's. The fried rice was her favorite and she always devoured a double order before the meal was served. She was very creative and was always busy working on some kind of arts and craft project. Grace was a huge lover of music and reading. The public library was her happy place. As all her friends knew, Grace's biggest obsession was an ice-cold Dr. Pepper.

A Celebration of Life service will be held on Thursday, August 15th at 3:00 PM at Highland Park United Methodist Church. In lieu of flowers, donations can be made in Grace's name to the University Park Public Library, the National Parks Foundation, Highland Park United Methodist Church, or the charity of your choice.

Click this link to visit Grace's Personal Remembrance Page to share your cherished memories and upload photos of your time with her.