Gracelyn was six months away from her second birthday when she accidentally drowned in a pond on a relative’s property. Fully ambulatory at 18 months old, Gracelyn slipped out the door of her aunt’s home without anyone noticing. She innocently made her way to the small body of water located behind the house before becoming submerged for an unknown amount of time.
“We don’t know how long she was in the water until she was found. We estimate it could possibly have been 5-10 minutes,” Gracelyn’s mother Lynsey wrote to us. “It took an additional 15 minutes for paramedics to get a pulse, leaving her brain deprived of oxygen possibly 25-30 minutes.”
That afternoon Gracelyn suffered an anoxic brain injury which has severely affected her physical and cognitive development. With faith in their heart, Gracelyn’s family marches forward in hopes of a recovery that can return some quality of life.
Gracelyn shoots her mother Lynsey a smile as she’s safely strapped into her Holton’s Heroes custom-made adaptive bike.
Over the past few years Gracelyn, whom her parents refer to as a “miracle,” has dealt with numerous medical issues from painful posturing to spats of inconsolable crying to unpredictable muscle spasms.
This miracle child’s incredible parents, Lynsey and Brian, have stopped at nothing to give their daughter a better chance at recovery. Since her injury, her parents have taken Gracelyn to countless specialists and therapists around the country—and even traveled to Monterrey, Mexico in 2019 so Gracelyn could undergo stem cell treatment.
Focused on instilling a sense of normalcy in their household, Gracelyn’s parents run a very specific home day-to-day recovery plan that includes a specific diet, as well as customized intellectual, physical and respiration programs.
“Gracelyn has become increasingly more alert, has learned to vocalize and even smile,” Lynsey updated us. “She is still severely compromised because of her injury, but with the daily program we’ve been doing at home for six hours each day she is progressing well.”
We were thrilled to learn that Gracelyn can now move all her limbs on command and can even express herself with smiles and giggles. So much so that when she recently had an opportunity to test out an adaptive bike at an Abilities Expo, she was able to let her mom know she wanted one for herself.
Holton’s Heroes jumped at the opportunity to fund the custom build of an adaptive bike for Gracelyn, which you can see in the photo is a perfect fit for the miniature hero! Special needs bikes like this one cost upwards of $4,000 per bike, so thank you to all of our generous donors who made this gift possible. In the words of Gracelyn’s mother, “I”m so excited about this! Thank you so much.” ;)
Click here to donate to HH so we can continue to help kid’s like Gracelyn.
“I am so appreciative of the wonderful meal you shared with us this last February. It was comforting to visit with someone that not only knows the struggles of helping a child with severe special needs, but someone who is working diligently and compassionately to help others. I am grateful and humbled to be one of those “others” who can benefit from your great work. ”
On Father’s Day in 2017, 2-year-old Josiah was running around his home, excitedly zooming from room-to-room , as he typically did. However, in a matter of seconds he managed to elope out of the back door undetected and make his way to the family pool. Read Josiah’s amazing tale of recovery now.