Meet Terry Grahl | Founder, Visionary and CEO of Enchanted Makeovers

We had the good fortune of connecting with Terry Grahl and we’ve shared our conversation below.

Hi Terry, what was your thought process behind starting your own business?
How Enchanted Makeovers non-profit began.

In early 2005 I started an interior decorating business called Terry’s Enchanted Cottage. It quickly became an award-winning business, and I was so very grateful. Life seemed good. I had moved on from my past, so I thought. That could have been the end of my story, but it was only just the beginning.

In December 2006 I received a call from a gentleman asking for help. I was an interior decorator, and he was a volunteer for a local shelter. He said, “We would be so grateful even if you just painted one wall.” Honestly, at the time, my first reaction was fear. I really didn’t know what to expect. I had never been to a shelter. I decided to make the visit but wasn’t convinced I would actually volunteer.

What I saw at the shelter shook me:

donated prison bunkbeds.
duct-taped walls and cribs.
nursing home bedspreads so thin I could poke my finger through them.
lights hanging from wires.
30 women in one dorm with their children and no privacy
cardboard boxes for dressers under the beds.

Everything internally the women were feeling unloved, forgotten, ashamed, worthless – it was being reflected in their environment too. That’s unacceptable because you’re there to heal and rebuild. Your environment should be full of dignity. It should be sacred just how my mother provided for me and my siblings. That love in every little detail is critical in the healing. I believed the external transformation of the room could mirror a woman’s internal transformation. If she is surrounded by beauty, love and caring, she’ll start to integrate that and believe she is worthy of that too.

What should our readers know about your business?
I’m the Founder, Visionary and CEO of Enchanted Makeovers. I’m also a wife, mother to four wonderful adult children, a storyteller and a person who went through homelessness as a child. I’m a flea market fanatic who loves to rescue grandmas’ old treasures and use them for a greater purpose. I’m on a mission to not only bring women and children in shelters dignity but also to inspire our village of donors and volunteers to dream while they’re awake, heal their hearts and to find their voices. Through our transformative programs, women and children in shelters, as well as volunteers and donors are introduced to a way of life, a way of thinking that helps to shift their outlook about their lives and possibilities for the future. A path is created for creativity, self-expression, and worth. They can finally go to bed and dream and wake up with hope.

Enchanted Makeovers is a national nonprofit 501 (c) 3 organization that began with a phone call in Dec. 2006. I was asked if I would volunteer my time and paint just one wall at a shelter for women and children. In Jan. 2007 I visited the shelter that was once an old post office, and it changed the course of my life. I closed my for-profit business and started a non-profit. The mission serves women and children living in shelters that have escaped human trafficking, domestic violence, and female homeless veterans. We have an unmatched ability to create a connection with the shelter, its residents and the surrounding community. We are the pioneers of change within shelters.

EM provides very unique projects and programs to shelters. The Sacred Sewing Room Program is a permanent sewing room that is set up in a shelter for not only learning a life skill, but it is therapeutic and a beautiful way to share your voice through creativity. We don’t donate machines; we provide a program. You will find a mural, brand new machines, sewing tables, bolts of fabric, trim, pillow forms, cutting table, vintage mason jars filled with buttons and even a vintage dress form wearing a 40’s dress with the powerful patch attached, I am a WARRIOR! Capes for Kids is another program where communities of all ages can not only make capes with our sewing or non-sew pattern but understand the power from within. It’s not about superman. We believe every child has everything within themselves to be their very own superhero.

Where we sleep is so critical not only for our mind but physically. Transforming bedrooms into healing spaces by sharing the positive energy of people serving their God given talent. Yes! We are energy. When one is rebuilding your life from the inside out. Your surrounding should reflect that. Far too many shelters still have the institutional look and feel. It takes the same time to paint a wall cream as it does a sunny yellow. The comfort of a handmade quilt, crocheted blanket, colorful pillowcases and even some with embroidered positive affirmations is such a reminder that you matter. Dolls are made by hand and given to the children for comfort. Murals that have the power of turning on the switch of our imagination. IT IS a survival skill that many are unaware of. Women and children will live at shelters for up to one year before moving to transitional housing. I was called for the first steppingstone. The shelter! If you don’t make it through the shelters program, you don’t move to the next steppingstone.

We are now into our 17th year, and I can say this. The relationships you build throughout the years is critical in keeping the vision moving forward and what you’ve been called to do. Has it been easy? NO! I remember in the very beginning the ugly cry while I sat in my car after hearing from a store manager, I don’t have time for you! I was only asking for a couple cans of paint to be donated. I wiped my tears, moved on to the next store and continued to send out emails. The perseverance, putting footsteps to my prayers and the passion is so critical in any business. The tribe you surround yourself with will either uplift, teach you or distract you. Choose wisely and always remember the core values of why you started your business.

Fast forward and I’m so proud of what we have all accomplished. Enchanted Makeovers projects and programs have impacted thousands of lives. It wasn’t just the women and children in the shelters who were transformed. Each and every volunteer, schoolchild, nursing home resident, sorority sister, company employee and shelter staff member has changed the way they see their community and serve others.

In 2018, the restoration of a 1920’s Arts and Crafts home, gifted to Enchanted Makeovers, was completed! So many donors and volunteers worked tirelessly to transform this once abandoned and vandalized property into our new national headquarters. She is reborn and shines upon all who visits.

Most important message I want to leave behind. “When we change the way we serve, it changes the way we see each other.” Terry Grahl

If you had a friend visiting you, what are some of the local spots you’d want to take them around to?
Enchanted Makeovers headquarters is based in Taylor, Mi. and a historical home. I would definitely recommend visiting Heritage Park. Our backyard leads to this wonderful place. It is a park with more historical homes, buildings and even an old train. Great place to walk, watch some baseball games and visit the precious petting farm for all ages to enjoy. if you love to thrift, I highly recommend Motor City Antique Mall in Flatrock, Mi or Plaza Antique Mall in Lincoln Park, Mi. We have several restaurants in the area. No worries on going hungry.

Who else deserves some credit and recognition?
First and foremost, I always first give God the Glory. I what to THANK every single woman that I have met rebuilding their lives in shelters. Each raw and real conversation shared has taught me the very importance of listening without always having the answers, and the power of the human spirit. I tell you this! No victim, No survivor, BUT true WARRIORS.

Next is the incredible people I have met throughout the years that have been truly divine appointments and divine timing. I say these words because there is no other way of explaining when the mission is in need of help or fear tries to creep in, days later we meet a human (earth angel) ready to serve. Many people during these appointments have even joined Enchanted Makeovers Team and have become Board Members. Our worldwide volunteers and donors (EM’s handmade community) are very precious to the mission. They truly understand about serving with your talent and time (which you can never get back). Ellen Banks EM’s COO for the mission is not only my dear friend, but one amazing warrior when it comes to protecting the mission at all costs. You can even find one of her power suits when she worked in the Corporate World hanging on a vintage dress form in her office. This is how it all works. We all excel at something; no micromanaging and each Board member and team member serving with their God given talent. I am thankful and full of gratitude for every single person that has and is, supporting Enchanted Makeovers mission.

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Image Credits
Enchanted Makeovers has full rights to photos.