Winnie is a sweet and vibrant six-year-old with an amazing smile. She is a daredevil who loves to bounce, swing, and go fast! She loves things most young girls do! She loves the water (especially hot tubs!), going to the park, being outside, books, snuggling with her little brother, and Disney’s Moana!

When Winnie was three days old, she failed a newborn hearing test. Soon, she was diagnosed with auditory neuropathy. This means she can hear, but her brain scrambles the signal, so it is distorted.

In her first few months, Winnie’s parents noticed she wasn’t meeting milestones like sitting up and rolling over. When she began having seizures at just 10 months old, they knew there was more to her developmental delays. Over the next year, she was diagnosed with Epilepsy, Cerebral Palsy, and Cortical Visual Impairment.

Winnie is non-verbal and uses a wheelchair to get around. She requires very specialized, constant care and attention, and is considered medically high-risk. She has had several surgeries to give her family new tools to enhance her life, like a feeding tube and a cochlear implant.

Winnie’s life is full of occupational, physical, and speech therapy. She is currently trialing a device called an “Eye Gaze” that hopefully she can use in the future to communicate with her eyes! Her favorite therapy has been Hippotherapy, where she does PT while riding a horse!

Winnie will be adopted as a Sparrow to Barlow High School. Students will work hard to not only love and support her but raise money for Winnie through sponsored community service and fundraising for medical and daily expenses.