Pray for Gracie

11/19/2025

Quick update!

Gracie is tolerating certain foods pretty well and we are so relieved! She is on the road to recovery and we are so grateful. Just one week ago, we had no idea if that would be possible. We will never be able to thank our community enough for the prayers and support during the scariest week of our family’s life.

Continue to pray as she recovers and navigates a new way of life in many ways- she is the bravest and strongest person I know! At this point, I will let her update you all herself when she is ready ❤️

WE LOVE YOU ALL!

11/15/2025

BIG UPDATE! PRAISE TO JESUS!

The doctors at Barnes were sent to us straight from the hand of God!

We met with Gracie’s immunologist and allergist who confirmed what we have been suspecting since the beginning, but unable to find someone to listen- until today. Gracie has a condition called MCAS (mast cell activation syndrome)- this causes her mast cells to release too much histamine and tells your body that you are having random allergic reactions that are very unpredictable. This is something she has probably had since childhood and will have to live with for the rest of her life. BUT, while not widely known about, it is treatable and manageable with the right care.

That being said, after giving her a regiment of medication she was able to try drinking a little bit of broth tonight which was successful so far!

There are still some things we have to figure out with her heart (POTS) and nervous system as some of what has happened is unrelated to the MCAS, but we are on the right path!

Please continue to pray that she tolerates the foods they are trialing as this will determine when she is able to come home.

Pray that we find the right combination of medication that will treat her- everyone with this condition is different and responds differently.

Pray for her heart and mind, recovering from this experience will likely take time both mentally and physically.

We cannot thank you enough for your prayers thus far. We have seen undoubtably that there is power in the name of Jesus. Gracie is our little miracle… has been since the day she was born. She stands as an ongoing testimony of the faithfulness of God. The journey to learning to live with this will likely be difficult, but we REJOICE that God has heard our prayers and paved the way for our girl to move forward.

11/14/2025

Yesterday the doctor in Springfield decided we could not wait on EMS any longer and arranged to fly her to Barnes. She is as good as she can be and is settling in. We are all here with her and Grant’s family will be here this evening.

The allergist/immunologist should be in to see her this morning and we are so hopeful they will have a plan.

Please pray that her noisy roommate will allow her some rest (🥴).

Pray that the Lord would continue to sustain her very weak body and keep her from discouragement and fear. She is traumatized and scared.

Pray that the doctor she needs is already here with the knowledge they need to have “for such a time as this”.

Will update when we know more!

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11/13/2025

11/13 update-

After starting the formula in her feeding tube last night, she has not had a reaction!! Thank you Jesus! We are still waiting on an ambulance to be available for transport, please pray that happens soon! Long post ahead as I want to share in detail the journey thus far and to proclaim the Lord's faithfulness in all of this. My hope is that her journey may help someone else who finds themselves in this position in the future.

From the beginng of this whole thing, it has been a fight to find someone to listen and understand what is happening to Gracie. In 2021, she was diagnosed with POTS after many years of sudden fainting episodes (POTS is a chronic disorder that effects your heart and brain). When her allergic reactions started happening, her fainting/passing out was majorly exasperated and the combination of the 2 was making living life extremely difficult. After struggling to get help from her cardiologist at the time, we decided to seek a second opinion from elsewhere. Our cousin Caitie has epilepsy and POTS and had started seeing Dr. Lee in Springfield, so we made an appointment there. Of course, as with most things, it would be some weeks before he was able to see her. BUT, as we've seen time and time again, God's timing is perfect. Thursday was her first anaphylactic episode and the hospital here, while concerned, did not have a clue what to do for her and sent her home. As God would ordain it, her appointment with Dr. Lee was the next day. We packed up our very sick girl and drove her up, praying that somehow this could get her help. Dr. Lee may have saved my sister's life that day. He listened, was extremely concerned, and even though technically this was out of his scope of treatment, he was going to help us get her in front of the right people. That night she went anaphylactic again, and again was sent home from the local hospital. At this point she had not eaten for days. The next day, she had a heart episode and Dr. Lee advised that we bring her to the ER at his hospital in Springfield. Again, God went before us, as Grant's aunt and uncle had just moved to the area providing a place to stay a loving support. Once there, she was anaphylactic 3 more times, to one pecan, and allergy med they gave her and the TPN IV nutrients. This was the scariest moment as we knew that last reaction meant her options where becoming very slim. Praise God that the team at Mercy Springfield were determined to research and help our girl (shout out to nurse Marissa and her doctor, you are sent from God). At this point, they determined that she needed more than they could offer and that Barnes Jewish was the next step. Wouldn't you know it, Grant's sister lives in St. Louis and his family is not far from there in Quincy, IL. So many of you have reached out and let us know that you or a loved one has been incredibly cared for at Barnes and that has given us so much peace and hope that they will have the answers and treatment we desperately need.

In Esther 4, we see Mordecai in mourning over the decree Haman sent out for the annihilation of Israel. Earlier in the story, Esther had been chosen as queen, long before the decree went forth. God heard the cries of His people and provided their salvation by placing Esther in the palace, long before a tear was even shed or danger was even known. We have already seen and are continuing to believe that God is going before Gracie and that he has already placed the right doctors and nurses in her path "for such a time as this". Last night Gracie told me, "everything I have prayed for, God has done." And He will continue to in Jesus name!

Let me end with this, Jesus loves you. If you don't know him, let us introduce you. He has carried us, held us, sustained us, empowered us to advocate and fight and gone before us. We are not yet at the end of this battle, but we have seen undeniable proof of God's miraculous power so many times already.

Please continue to pray, there is still a long road ahead as we seek diagnosis and treatment.

"When all I see is the battle, You see my victory".

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11/13/2025

PRAISING THE LORD!! A bed has opened up at Barnes and Gracie will be transferred tonight or tomorrow morning! They told us yesterday it would probably be a week before they could get her there… BUT GOD!!

She also finally got her feeding tube started about an hour ago- please pray she does not have a reaction!

Keep the prayers coming friends! We have seen God’s hand all over this and we know He is working on our behalf 🙏🏻❤️

11/12/2025

Good morning everyone! Let me start by saying how unbelievably humbled and grateful we are for all of your generosity on the GoFundMe. Being able to alleviate some aspect of stress in all of this means everything. From the bottom of our hearts- thank you.

We believe that the war is fought when we are on our knees in prayer, and we are so blessed to have so many of you going to battle for our girl. We know there is power in the name of Jesus and he can do the impossible- nothing is too hard for Him. Reading through all your comments and seeing your support is getting us through.

How to pray today:

1. Pray that they are able to track down the hypoallergenic formula to feed her quickly. Her body is in desperate need of fuel.

2. The plan is to send her to Barnes Hospital in St. Louis as soon as a room is available, which could take days. Please pray that a bed becomes available for her sooner than they anticipate and she is an able to see the specialists she needs asap.

3. Pray for Grant as he navigates this all by her side, that God would cover him in peace.

We have already seen God’s hand in all of this and believe He will continue to be faithful. Keep praying, friends- It is not just a voice thrown into the wind, it is a plea to the almighty creator of the universe who holds all of this in His capable hands. He hears and He cares.

11/11/2025

Whitney here- we will be updating everyone on Gracie's ongoing health struggles here on this page.

Some background on what's been going on:

Early in September, Gracie started having some mysterious food allergies. One day she was fine, the next day she was unable to get out of bed. After eliminating different things, (left with about 9 "safe" foods) she started feeling a little better and was able to get up and around some. Once she went back to work, these allergies began to manifest themselves in reactions to chemicals and environment. As a hair stylist, this made working nearly impossible. At this point her doctor suspected something called Mast Cell Activation Syndrome and they began looking into treatment options.

This past Thursday, things went from bad to worse when one of her few "safe" foods sent her into anaphylactic shock. This sparked a series of anaphylactic episodes leading to her being admitted to Mercy Hospital in Springfield, MO. Since Thursday, she has had to have epinephrine 5 times for reactions to food, medication, and the IV nutrients they attempted to administer. We are desperate for answers and to find a way to get her nourishment as she has not eaten (anything...) in 6 days now.

We just got word that they will be transferring her to a bigger hospital in St Louis, so pray that a bed opens up quickly. They will also be trying a new formula today, so pray she tolerates that well.

PLEASE PRAY that God brings the right doctors and ulitmately that he would miraculously heal her.

photo taken days before this all began on at our bday party!