Mom to tow disabled daughter in Bring on the Bay swim

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When Anne Griffith takes to the water Saturday for her three-kilometre Bring on the Bay open water swim, she won’t have to look far for motivation: Her daughter, Amelia, will be floating along, right behind her.

Amelia, 3 1/2, was born paralyzed from the chest down. Griffith will tow her in a special raft alongside approximately 800 other endurance swimmers stroking their way across Britannia Bay in the annual Bring on the Bay fundraiser for Easter Seals.

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Together they are “Team MeMe” — the name Amelia’s twin sister, Lily, called her because she couldn’t pronounce “Amelia.”

“She’s just the best companion,” Griffith said. “She loves it so much.”

This will be Griffith’s third Bring on the Bay challenge. Along the way, she has raised more than $26,000 for Easter Seals, including $10,000 this year in sponsorships by family, friends and co-workers.

It will be Amelia’s first.

“Kids like her, you can’t treat them like bubble babies because then they would have no quality of life at all and it’s already a low quality of life,” Griffith said. “I don’t want her to be like one of those disabled kids that just stays at home all the time. I do all I can to bring her out with me as much as possible.”

Amelia and Lily were born at the beginning of the COVID-19 pandemic, 10 weeks premature. Griffith and her husband, Casey Thomas, knew early in the pregnancy that Amelia’s legs weren’t developing.

Both are federal public servants with dual benefits, but even so the cost of raising a child with disabilities is massive: thousands of dollars for a pediatric wheelchair and thousands more for a special frame that allows Amelia to stand and put weight on her legs to keep the bones from deteriorating. Then there are physical, occupational and speech therapy sessions, an ergonomic stroller and a “trunk brace” that takes the place of her missing abdominal muscles.

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They and other families depend on help from Easter Seals. Now in its 17th year, Bring on the Bay raised more than $80,000 for Easter Seals last year. Saturday’s registration is set to be the largest event ever, Easter Seals’ Linda Clouthier said.

Griffith was a competitive swimmer when she was younger and took up distance swimming as she got older. When she was pregnant with the twins, swimming was the only way she could exercise.

“She’s the greatest companion for all my athletics,” Griffith said. She goes on long runs on Saturdays with Amelia in a special stroller that the family has modified to support Amelia’s head. Griffith and Thomas tow the girls on sleds when they cross-country ski in Gatineau Park.

She was inspired to bring Amelia on her Bring on the Bay swim by Dick and Rick Hoyt, the father and son team who ran more than 30 Boston Marathons together as well as numerous Ironman triathlons. Rick had cerebral palsy and Dick would tow him in a raft on their long-distance swims.

“I thought, if they can do that, so can I,” Griffith said.

It took Griffith several tries to find a suitable raft for Amelia. She settled on an inflatable boat designed for anglers, one with high enough sides to keep Amelia from getting splashed by waves. Amelia sits in a mesh originally meant as a spot for angler to dump their fish. She wears a personal flotation device, and Griffith has rigged a shade to protect her from the sun. Thomas paddles alongside the pair in a kayak for safety and support.

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Amelia weighs just 14 kilograms, so light that Griffith must add additional weight for ballast. She says she barely notices the added drag as she swims. They went out last weekend for a practice swim in Britannia Bay.

“She just floats along,” Griffith said. “Amelia slept the whole way.”

Bring on the Bay begins at the Nepean Sailing Club with elite swimmers setting out at 8 a.m. Griffith and Amelia will begin in a later wave alongside “swim angels” escorting other swimmers who need assistance because of disabilities or medical conditions. A second, shorter 1.5-kilometre swim departs from Britannia Beach.

The finish line is at the Britannia Yacht Club.

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