Amy Bock is a devoted champion for families with disabilities. Since the age of 8 years old, when her family adopted her two younger siblings with disabilities, Amy knew that she would dedicate her life to advocating for and supporting kids and families living with disability. While in high school, Amy volunteered her time to serve in the special needs classrooms and coordinated a daylight prom experience. She rallied her typical peers to create extraordinary promposals for the students who attended the daylight prom. Each student with a disability was asked and escorted to prom by their peers. This ignited local school districts in Warren County to do the same, and Little Miami has carried on this tradition since 2014.
In 2018, Amy Bock graduated from Ohio Northern University with a B.S. in Exercise Physiology, with plans to attend graduate school to become a pediatric physical therapist after playing professional basketball overseas. However, Amy sensed the call of God drawing her back home to start a non-profit to make an immediate impact in her community. It was at this moment that Amy realized that God’s plans were much greater than anything she could have dreamed for herself. After graduation, Amy worked for Warren County ESC at several schools supporting kids with disabilities, behavioral needs, and students in mental health crises. She worked in these school environments while starting her own non-profit, Grace Recreation Center.
Grace Recreation Center was created in 2019 to engage, equip and empower individuals with disabilities and their families through the love and grace of God. Grace RC is named after Amy’s best friend and little sister, Kyia Grace. Amy is passionate about sharing both her family’s experience and her faith as a way to connect with other families and offer hope to the most unreached people group in the world – those living with disabilities. As the founder of Grace Recreation Center, Amy has partnered with families to see transformation in their lives by providing recreational and social opportunities tailored specifically for individuals with disabilities. These opportunities don’t simply provide something for individuals to do, but a place for them to belong. Grace RC strives to be a place where everyone can participate, grow and thrive.
Amy’s passion for creating spaces of belonging doesn’t stop at Grace RC. Amy is currently on staff at Rivers Crossing Church as the Disability Ministry Coordinator. This is a role that she doesn’t take lightly and sees as the greatest honor in her professional career, thus far. In this role, she oversees the development of programs and initiatives that ensure all church activities are accessible to everyone, regardless of their physical or cognitive abilities. Amy’s efforts have been instrumental in fostering an environment where individuals with disabilities and their families feel welcomed, valued, and supported within the church community.
Together with her husband Aaron, Amy has embraced the journey of foster care and adoption, welcoming two wonderful boys with disabilities into their family. They are committed to provide their sons with the resources, encouragement and unconditional love they need to reach their full potential. In just the past year, both boys have grown by leaps and bounds and are thriving in their new family. In addition to their sons, the Bocks have a beautiful one year old daughter, Adeline.
Amy’s unwavering dedication to her work and her family is fueled by her faith and deep sense of purpose. She believes that everyone deserves to live a life full of meaning and hope, and she will be the first one to help break down the barriers and build the bridges to allow people to experience the extraordinary life. Amy’s greatest reward in life is when she can share her passion to build belonging with people and to see them grow to be inclusive and welcoming of all people. One church, one organization, one business and one home at a time.