Before Grace Rett's life was tragically cut short last year, she was not only a world record holder on the Holy Cross Crusader's rowing team, but in her younger years an Angels basketball player and dedicated student at Our Lady of the Valley (OLV) in Uxbridge.
On Thursday her alma mater dedicated and broke ground on the site that will become the Grace Rett Athletic Complex and Education Center.
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"I know she would be thrilled, she would be so thrilled," said her mom, Mary Jo Rett. "Not just about the gym but the classrooms. Honestly, she was a true student athlete, and just to know how much better it will be for them, that's what she will be most excited about."
Mary Jo Rett still teaches music at OLV.
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Her sister Brianne is also an alum who knows first-hand how much it will mean to the students to finally have a home court in Grace's memory.
"Having been in their shoes before and this being something that I always dreamed of -- like all of us have, especially Grace -- but I am so excited for them because I can feel how excited they should be," Brianne Rett said.
From a $1 million anonymous gift to $10 individual donations, the OLV community has so far risen to the challenge of raising $3.2 of the $3.8 million they need to make Rett's dream come true.
Now her father said he can't wait for the Angels' first home game on their new home court, with their own personal angel Grace cheering them on in spirit.
"It means a lot because it means Grace is still living, her spirit is still alive in the other kids and in the community," Chris Rett said.
