Miracle six-year-old inspires family’s faith, fitness

What started as a well-baby check to find the gender of her yet-to-be-born son a little more than six years ago turned into a very somber test of faith for Jamie Swan, of Middleburg, and her husband, Rob.

“We were told it was a boy, but something was wrong. We were sent to a specialist in Harrisburg, and everyone came in to look at the ultrasound and then took us to a room to talk,” Jamie remembered. “They shared that he wasn’t moving his arms and legs properly and most likely wouldn’t survive birth. They recommended we consider termination — but that wasn’t an option for us. We figured this was part of God’s plan for his life.”

A few months later, on June 20, 2013, Griffin was born.

“He was perfectly healthy. He was born with some physical limitations, but he has found ways to adapt and continues to inspire us and everyone around him with his positive attitude ever since,” Jamie said. “You rarely will find him without a smile on his face. He’s so happy and enjoys trying to make others laugh. He wants to do things for himself and pushes himself, and that really inspires others in their own lives.”

Rob agreed.

“We were encouraged to terminate because they didn’t think he would live, but here he is inspiring change in our family and friends,” he said.

Griffin was diagnosed with arthrogryposis, a condition involving lack of muscle and joint stiffness at birth that can affect daily functioning. Griffin uses a wheelchair, although he has built up the ability to walk short distances with a walker.

“He has no biceps muscle, so he can’t actively bend his arm,” said Jamie. “However, he pushes against table and that is how he bends the arm. He does it with a smile, adapts and figures it out.”

Griffin’s perseverance has inspired his family in a similar way. Jamie decided to start running 5K races for Griffin in 2014.

“I made a vow to him that I would run for him until he could run for himself,” she said. “My husband has started running and we, as a family, have become more fit because Griffin is there cheering us on.”

The inspiration for better fitness didn’t stop there. Rob and Jamie decided to pioneer a CrossFit-style workout program at their church, New Hope Baptist near Middleburg, they call “ChristFit.”

“The program runs a few days a week and is free to both members of the church and the general public,” Rob said.

“We lead off with prayer and a scripture reading, then work out and encourage each other and then end in prayer,” Jamie added. “It is like strengthening both your soul and body together while helping to encourage others.”

Sessions run 7:30-8:30 p.m. Mondays, 7:40-8:40 p.m. Wednesdays, 5-6 a.m. Fridays and 7-8 a.m. Saturdays.

Griffin has endured five surgeries already, and more may be necessary as he gets older to help offset growth in joints and bones.

“We know that as he gets older, we may need to be stronger to help him adjust. We try to do everything we can to make sure he is included in all our activities, and we are an active family,” she said. “He really has motivated us to lose weight and get ourselves in shape.”

The family, including Griffin’s five older siblings, does everything it can to raise awareness for arthrogryposis and has created a Facebook page called “Team Griffin,” in which they share photos and videos in an effort to inspire others.

“We have a lot of people that follow the page and it helps them through their own struggles,” said Jamie. “We share milestone moments for Griffin, showing him working hard in therapy, and people often comment or tell me in person that they may go to the page having a bad day, but then they see Griffin doing his thing and it lifts them up and motivates them.”

Jamie admits that her role as Griffin’s mother over the past six years has not always been easy, but that her faith grounds her and has helped her overcome the most trying of moments.

“My favorite verse is the one that encourages us to ‘be still and know that I am God,’” she said. “I spend a lot of time in prayer, especially during his surgeries and the moments when things are harder to deal with.

“Without our faith, I don’t know how we’d get through it.”