Stitchings of Faith, Fashion, and Motherhood

Oftentimes faith isn’t found in an instant. Instead it comes through our calling - built on the events of our lives, guided by the grit that gets us to our goals, and fostered through ongoing grace.

For Mary Grace Godfrey, the designer behind the custom coats first worn by Vice President JD Vance and Second Lady Usha Vance’s children on Inauguration Day 2025 which marked President Donald Trump’s second term and the official start of the Trump-Vance Administration, this is certainly true. Much of Godfrey’s faith has been sown through her calling as a designer and as a mother - fabric by fabric in her career and moment by moment raising her four-year-old daughter Anya.

As faith has built her calling, so too does it strengthen Godfrey’s work, both in business and in motherhood.

“There is certainly the influence of my faith on everything I do,” said Godfrey. “…my faith is deeply woven into both my daily tasks and our home life.”

Not long after the inauguration, these custom jackets also came to create what has now become a classic American photo when in February 2025, just a month after the carefully crafted coats made their debut on Inauguration Day, the Vance children emerged from Air Force Two donning the jackets paired with PJs after a long flight to Paris. Before 2025, young children had been absent from any presidential administration since Kennedy and this particular snapshot from Paris brought with it echoes of America’s Camelot.

For Godfrey, the fame that found her designs for the Vance children were precluded in part by both personal and professional obstacles.

“In the weeks prior to the design request from Usha, it is true that I was dealing with a series of setbacks that affected me both professionally and spiritually,” Godfrey reflected. “It caused me to doubt my gameplan and reasons for doing what I do. Ultimately, what got me through was surrendering: I placed my hope in Christ and believed that his guidance would be the only way to find true success. It had to recenter my interior life and business, Anagrassia.”

The sanctification of work inspires her daily tasks as mother, designer, and business owner. Godfrey routinely prays with her daughter and she prays as she crafts each of her pieces.

In particular, as Godfrey sews, she prays for the client who will wear the garment. This is a tradition passed down from her grandmother who, three decades ago, supported her own family as a seamstress after immigrating to the U.S. The example of combining prayer and work passed down from her grandmother to Godfrey is in itself an illustration of the impact faith has through the calling of motherhood albeit in this particular scenario a form of motherhood a generation removed.

As a mother with a design business, Godfrey’s hands are more than full. Subsequently, her work as a mother naturally complements her work as a business owner and designer. She often brings Anya to the atelier, especially when Anya is not in school during the summer.

“By the end of summer, the atelier is usually a hot mess, and I’m often backed up on emails, work, and everything else,” Godfrey said. “But I think it’s important to prioritize her and make sure she feels like she really is the most important thing in my life.”

Juggling motherhood alongside her profession has deepened Godfrey’s belief in the importance of aligning efforts with purpose in work.

“When things get too out of control, raising a child reminds me that work is not about getting things done, but doing things well and for the right reasons,” said Godfrey.

A component of this concept of aligning efforts with purpose is empowering Anya through Godfrey’s maternal example of the importance of prayer. Godfrey prays daily with her daughter and the two regularly attend church together.

“She knows that I need 15–20 minutes of prayer each morning before we begin our day,” Godfrey said. “We pray the rosary together in the car on the way to school, and whenever we hear an ambulance, we stop and say a Hail Mary for the person in need.”

Godfrey has witnessed firsthand how this example of faith is already impacting Anya’s daily life.

“It’s the little things she notices and imitates that remind me how much she absorbs from our daily practices,” Godfrey said. “I am proud of her that she doesn’t see a division between faith and living life.”

One year since the Trump-Vance Administration’s inauguration, Godfrey’s business has grown exponentially after the exposure it received from the inauguration and second family’s Paris trip. Godfrey’s invested the revenue back into her business purchasing new equipment and textiles and even moving to a larger atelier, which includes a space for sewing classes and a showroom. Additionally, Godfrey’s rolled out new products like the Wool Cocoon Coat for girls and this past fall her work was featured in Inside Weddings magazine.

“It’s surprising that the inauguration was one year ago,” Godfrey reflected. “So much was packed into one year, both for me and the administration, that it feels like three years ago.”

For Godfrey, when doubt creeped in, prayer made it possible to move forward and believe in her design business. Today, this same faith not only helps the business continue to blossom, but Godfrey’s little girl too. It’s both faith and motherhood that makes Godfrey’s career all the more fulfilling.