Gracie's Story: A Big Blue swimmer and her family teach us about celebrating BIG moments in the pool and in life!

At a time when some of us feel anxious or uncertain about what tomorrow holds, we want to share with you a story about one of our Big Blue swimmers. She and her family have been an inspiration to our team and brighten our day each time we see them!

Meet five-year-old Gracie Miehlke.

As a baby, Gracie was diagnosed with an extremely rare disorder known as auditory brainstem pathway dysfunction which affected her hearing and speech development. Gracie worked with speech and audiology therapists on identifying sounds to mitigate her hearing loss. Doctors at Lurie Children’s Hospital of Chicago helped her overcome it, but not long after, Gracie experienced flu-like symptoms and developed an abscess on her thigh.

She was diagnosed with neutropenia, a condition caused by an abnormally low concentration of white blood cells that leaves the body vulnerable to infections, for which she received treatment for 18 months. Without immediate medical attention, neutropenia can cause the body to enter a state of potentially fatal septic shock.

Gracie made a full recovery and was a perfectly healthy child for three months—when her parents noticed she was having trouble walking. This was also the time Gracie started swim lessons at Big Blue Swim School in Wilmette, IL. “When she started swimming, Gracie was two and a half. She was shy, scared, and she needed to warm up to the idea and to the teachers, because she was so used to being in hospitals and poked by needles,” recalls Gracie’s mother, Sylvia. “But it didn’t take long for her to learn to trust Nicole. Gracie loved her and only wanted to swim with her.”

“I remember having Gracie in the pool for the first time like it was yesterday,” said Nicole. “She was one of my first trial swims as a new instructor and she cried the entire time. I had to hold her and she would cuddle into my shoulder and wouldn’t look at anyone. Once Gracie signed up for weekly lessons, she was assigned to another teacher and would not get off the bench until one of the managers switched her to me. After that, it was all smiles!”

Nicole is still Gracie’s instructor and the two are a dynamic duo!  “Nicole was actually the one who noticed Gracie was having mobility issues,” said Sylvia. “She said Gracie was not using both sides of her body the same. She was only kicking with her left leg and that’s when we started connecting the dots.”

Gracie was diagnosed with juvenile idiopathic arthritis (JIA), which she suffered from in her ankles, knees and jaw.  “Gracie was so tough that as she was developing skills to walk, she figured out how to compensate for the pain. We didn’t realize she was walking differently until Nicole pointed out she wasn’t using her right side while swimming. I brought this up with her doctors and they confirmed she had lower muscle tone on her right side,” said Sylvia.

“We worked hand-in-hand with her doctors, physical therapist and with Nicole, who pushed Gracie in the pool to use both sides until we finally got her to realize she had two healthy legs to use,” said Sylvia. “Swimming at this time was so important for her as it was an activity she could do through her pain.”

“Being aware of her pain, I would play some extra games with her at the end of class because if anyone deserved game time it was definitely Gracie,” said Nicole. “Diving toys and princess jumping high fives have always been her favorite. She also loves jumping on this big foam frog and showing off her kicks.”

Once Gracie was feeling healthy and strong, Nicole and Sal, the Wilmette Assistant Manager, talked to Sylvia about having Gracie take private lessons so Nicole could focus entirely on Gracie during her lesson. “Nicole wanted to give her full attention to Gracie while she was swimming so they could work on all the things she could do to get her right side to catch up to her left side,” Sylvia explained. “It was so touching because they brought this up on their own, saying they think it will be helpful to her. The care, concern and the love the teachers have for Gracie, and for all the kids, is amazing and will always be very special to us.”

Gracie recently completed a full year of treatment that led her arthritis to enter a medicated remission in September. She still has another year of treatment for her arthritis which includes infusions every 28 days and taking another medication weekly.

If your family swims at the Wilmette pool you likely know Gracie. Her smile and her older brother Lucas’ kindness and generosity are hard to miss. Gracie recently participated in the annual Lurie Children’s Hospital Dance Marathon to raise money for the hospital, and she and Lucas collected donations at the pool and shared stickers while thanking people for their help. She and her family danced for eight hours at the marathon, and Gracie was awarded the top fundraiser for the year, raising a total of $5,505 to fight childhood illness, thanks in part to the donations of the Big Blue Wilmette community.

She is a true champion for Lurie Children’s Hospital and wants to be a doctor when she grows up. This year Gracie was named as a Children’s Miracle Network Champion and will be featured in Miracle Network campaigns throughout the year.

If you encounter Gracie and her brother Lucas at our pool, you’ll see how she works hard at each lesson. While her brother improves his stroke by swimming full laps in the BIG lane, you’ll find Gracie earning a few minutes of playtime on the floating frog pad.

While Big Blue Swim School is closed in response to COVID-19, Gracie is still practicing. “She found her goggles and was practicing her swimming in the bathtub just last night,” said Sylvia.

Taylor, the general manager at Big Blue’s Wilmette pool says it’s a joy to see Gracie and her big brother Lucas celebrate every moment they are at the pool. “Watching them smile and laugh makes my face hurt!” said Taylor. “Grace inspires me in many ways, and so does the team working with her. I am thankful to have Grace, her brother Lucas, and mother Ms. Sylvia to trust in what we create, and feel comfort in letting us build an environment where Gracie's troubles don't exist.”

If you ask Nicole about her favorite moments with Gracie and her family, you’ll get a long list! “My favorites are when she earns her ribbons because she never fails to amaze us with her hard work and determination,” said Nicole. “The look on her face when she sees a ribbon she earned is priceless. It makes me feel like I’m doing something right and the work I do at Big Blue is so meaningful by impacting Gracie’s life in a positive way.”

We share this story because Gracie and her family brighten our days. We hope their story does the same for you!