Bryce-Get me to the Meet on Time

My daughter Bryce was critically ill in May 2012, and as a result she had to have both hands and feet amputated in August 2012. Bryce has recovered at an amazing rate. Part of her recovery includes swimming. Bryce turns out to have an incredible talent for swimming competitively.  She now has a goal of competing in the Paralympics. This is not just a dream. Both Bryce's coaches and the Olympic scouts feel she has a real shot at making the US Paralympic Team. Her current lap times are on par with qualifying times for the summer games. The Paralympics take place shortly after the able bodied Olympics every 4 years. Bryce started out training with the Yucaipa Swim Team located in Southern California which required her to spend a minimum of 10 days per month training with the team in Southern California. The travel and being away from home took a huge toll on all of us.  Luckily in the Spring of 2016 Bryce was able to join the Albany Armada Aquatics located here in Northern California with Coach Helen Garcia at the helm.  Between the guidance Coach Helen has given and the proximity of the team Bryce is able to practice at least 5 days a week and even manages to get a morning and afternoon practice in several times per week. As a result she has improved at a staggering rate. She has been ranked both nationally and internationally by the International Paralympic Committee. All this took quite a bit of travel, training and commitment on both Coach Helen and Bryces  part. Luckily they were up to the task. We found out earlier this month that Bryce did not make Team USA for 2016 Paralympics in Rio but the Alternates  have not been announced yet so there is still that possibility. In the meantime we are re-focused on going to Tokyo in 2020. Coach Helen is encouraging Bryce to swim in as many meets as she can to help her be as prepared as possible. We continue to travel quite a bit as well as competing  in local meets and the costs can be astronomic. Any and all contributions are greatly appreciated. Thank you very much, Becky Ballinger (Bryces mom)