Hi MIke.

I am attempting the create a "pattern" section in a search box above a grid.

Did you know that we have an incremental search textbox in Chapter 4 of 1001 Things You Wanted to Know About VFP

It does not specifically set focus to a grid, but it does the searching, refreshes the form, etc. And it's generic. Drop it on a form, set a couple of properties and you a done.