Meet Rowan & Her Family

Rowan’s journey began long before she was born, a story woven with love, loss, and unwavering hope. Rowan’s mom, Lydia, a teacher at a local elementary school, was having a regular school day back in 2016 when she fell to the floor in the school cafeteria, suffering a grand mal seizure. She was rushed to the hospital and after some testing doctors discovered a brain tumor. She was just a week away from her first in vitro fertilization appointment. What would normally be an exciting time in a couple’s life who had struggled to conceive naturally for years, was now fraught with worry.

Lydia would go on to have two brain surgeries, chemotherapy, radiation, and then a failed embryo transfer. But in fall of 2019, an embryo transfer was successful, and Lydia and her husband Zach were expecting. While the couple were at a college football game, Lydia mentioned to Zach that she hadn’t felt the baby move. Then a nurse struggled to find a heartbeat at their appointment. Tragically, their baby, Jackson Dean Gatton, was delivered stillborn at 37 weeks.

As Lydia’s older sister, Sarah, drove the two and a half hours from Cedar Falls she was thinking of ways she could help her younger sister. She decided to step in as a surrogate, and she soon became pregnant with Rowan. In November of 2020, a beautiful 6-pound 8-ounce baby girl was born. Once home, Rowan failed to maintain her weight and began to get sick which led the family to seek testing. In December of 2020, Rowan was diagnosed with Trisomy 21, commonly known as Down syndrome.

The family started Rowan in occupational therapy and physical therapy right away and Rowan received a gastronomy tube to help with her nutrition. However, Rowan continued to fall behind on developmental benchmarks and was failing to thrive. At the time she was at an in-home daycare, but the couple made the decision to move her to Hand in Hand.

 Rowan now thrives at Hand in Hand. She’s now meeting milestones, and her physical and occupational therapists have seen so much progress in her. Her parents say being at Hand in Hand was the catalyst for positive change. Rowan is motivated by friendship and being part of an inclusive classroom. She wants to do all the things her friends are taking part in, whether it’s playing with blocks, putting together puzzles, or playing on the playground.

Zach said, “Hand in Hand is a place full of loving people who will do whatever is necessary to help your child grow. We love Hand in Hand!”

Now her parents can picture her as an elementary school student, as a teen, and as an adult, when before they were just focusing on getting her healthy. Hand in Hand has allowed them to imagine a future.

Her dad, Zach, said it best:

“For a long time, I couldn’t quite see what the future had in store for Rowan. Now, I can picture her walking to school with her friends and living a fulfilling life.”

This is what inclusion looks like.

Will you make your gift today and help us continue this vital work? Together, we can ensure that families like Rowan’s always have a place where belonging comes first.