UXBRIDGE, MASS. (WHDH) - The family of a beloved Holy Cross rower who died in a crash in Florida earlier this year is raising money to build a state-of-the-art athletics facility in memory of the aspiring sports psychologist.
Grace Rett, 20, was killed in a traffic accident in January when a van she and some of her teammates were riding in slammed into a pickup truck in Vero Beach. Holy Cross’ former rowing coach, Patrick Diggins, was behind the wheel.
Weeks before the crash, Rett broke the world record for continuous indoor rowing for her age group by rowing 237.55 miles in 62 hours.
“Grace was really funny and she was full energy,” said Mary Jo Rett, Grace’s mother. “She never stopped.”
An athlete through and through, Grace mastered basketball, attending Our Lady of the Valley Regional School in Uxbridge with her younger sister.
“I clearly remember every single day when we would have recess,” said Brianne Rett, Grace’s sister. “I’d get to run out and see my big sister. She was the best.”
While her time at the school was wonderful, there was something missing. For a sporty girl like Grace, the school had no gym. Mary Jo says her daughter always dreamed of creating one someday.
“She really did say that. ‘If I ever get enough money someday, I’m going to build a gym,'” Mary Jo recalled.
Following Grace’s death, the Rett family says they received a phone call from an anonymous donor who was willing to donate $1 million to build a gym in their daughter’s memory if the community matched it dollar for dollar.
The family is now working hard to raise the money to construct a 7,500-square-foot facility with a high school basketball court, bleachers, and indoor classrooms.
“Grace was going to spend her lifetime helping people in sports,” said Chris Rett, Grace’s father. “It was something she always talked about and it’s something we know that she would be so happy to hear that it was going to actually happen.”
Grace’s family says the gym will be a place of teamwork and good sportsmanship, the perfect legacy.
“She was just amazing in every aspect and I hope people have a little more Grace in their life,” Brianne added.
The goal is to break ground on the gym in the spring and have it opened by Christmas 2021.
If you would like to make a donation toward the G.R.A.C.E. Center, click here.
(Copyright (c) 2026 Sunbeam Television. All Rights Reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.)