Addison Gralund could be excused if she was bitter about the challenges life has placed in front of her.
She could be angry and frustrated, but Gralund has chosen a different path.
Instead of challenges, Gralund views them as a platform to lift and encourage those around her and is determined to make a positive impact and pursue her life’s passions.
Gralund was born with truncus arteriosus, which is a rare defect of the heart in which a single common blood vessel comes out of the heart instead of the usual two vessels. In other words, she was born with three heart valves instead of the typical four.
As a result, Gralund has undergone four open-heart surgeries. But that is just the start.
The valve to her heart has had to be replaced multiple times, she has heart stents and an aortic graft, in 2019 she developed endocarditis and this past summer she was diagnosed with orthostatic hypotension.
“She’s had to grow up a lot faster than her peers, and she’s been through, and seen more, than most adults probably have,” said her mother, Kris Gralund. “She’s learned how to react to different situations, and deal with adversity and understands that there’s a lot to life. She loves the game of softball. It’s taught her a lot, but life has taught her a lot about softball, too, kind of both ways.”
Don’t feel sorry for Gralund because she doesn’t feel sorry for herself.
“God chose her for a reason, and she can handle it. We can handle it as a family, even though the road has been rocky,” said her father, Ben Gralund. “I think that her path is destined to be something greater than what we can even imagine. I think she’s going to advocate for people and her purpose is far greater than softball.”
This is a story of strength, courage and perseverance and she has relied on her faith and her family.
“I have a strong faith in Christ, and he’s been in my life. He’s brought me through all my surgeries, so that’s important to me,” Addison Gralund said. “My family is the best support system I think anyone could ask for. I’m super close with my parents, my sister and my grandparents. They are incredibly supportive of me.”
While truncus arteriosus, endocarditis and orthostatic hypotension are all things Gralund lives with, it doesn’t begin to define and shape who she is as a person.
That story is best told by her actions.
In the hospital following her fourth open-heart surgery Gralund met a 4-year-old girl from the Dakotas who had arrived via life flight and required immediate open-heart surgery. It was the girl’s first open-heart surgery and she, and her family, were terrified.
“We instantly made a connection with that family. You know, it was my fourth time. Not that it felt like a breeze, but we’ve been through it three times. We get it. And I got to meet her and inspire this little 4-year-old and let her know it is going to be ok. Things do get better.”
From an early age, Gralund has been committed to helping others. She takes what life gives her and turns it into a positive.
Kris Gralund saw this when Addison was 10 years old.
“When she was 10, she was super upset because we found out in January that she was going to need surgery in March. But her heart was in such an unstable position that she had to stop everything. She couldn’t participate in physical education class and couldn’t play any sports. I saw her at that age jump into investing in other people. And a way for her to do that was she became a Sunday school teacher for younger kids.”
Kris Gralund’s uncle had a chance encounter with the Director of the American Heart Association for East Central Iowa on a flight and that has led to Addison Gralund becoming heavily involved with the American Heart Association.
“We have this group called Addie’s Army. So, when I go to the heart walks on the back of my shirt, it says Addie’s Army,” Addison Gralund said. “I have a ton of people who are part of my army and donate to the American Heart Association. They come to my heart walks, and they keep up with my story.”
She has been a Heart Ball ambassador, a Heart Walk ambassador and attends conventions all to raise funds for the American Heart Association.
“She was the ambassador for the Cedar Rapids Heart Ball when she was 11, and you have to get up on stage if you are the ambassador and tell your story,” Kris Gralund said. “And I asked her if she wanted any help. No, mom, I got it. She stood up in front of a 1,000 people and gave her speech that she had written.”
In May of this year, she will serve as a Heart Walk ambassador with the event being held at Kinnick Stadium on the campus of the University of Iowa.
“All the support I’ve received helps to keep me going, but I think just my love for life is what drives me. We only have one life, so we might as well use it. It’s unfortunate that I have had heart surgery, but at the same time, it’s not unfortunate because I’ve been able to use my story to impact other people.”
Ironic that Addison Gralund was born with truncus arteriosus because it turns out that she actually has the biggest heart.
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The trip from Marion, Iowa to Minneapolis, Minn., is approximately 275 miles one way and it is a trip that Addison Gralund and her parents Ben and Kris have made more than 20 times.
While Minneapolis offers visitors plenty of attractions and activities, the destination for the Gralund family is not the Mall of America, a Minnesota Twins game, or the Minneapolis Institute of Art.
The destination is the Mayo Clinic.
The Gralund family has made the trip to Mayo Clinic so frequently that they refer to it as going home.
After all the trips and interactions with the doctors at the Mayo Clinic, something special has happened.
Addison Gralund has found her professional purpose in life. And as is the custom with Gralund, she has taken her circumstances and transformed them into a path which will ultimately lead to a career in the healthcare profession.
“The Mayo Clinic is the best hospital anyone could ever go to. Mayo has taken care of me and my family at the same time. And that just means a lot. They connect with you on a different level.
“At Mayo, I remember going into my fifth or sixth catheterization laboratory procedure and Dr. Anderson looked at my parents and told them that he was going to return their daughter better than she is right now. That was just really comforting. Not only for me, of course, but for my parents as well.”
Ben Gralund has deep appreciation for the doctors and nurses at the Mayo Clinic.
“Without them, without the care, I actually don’t feel like we have Addie with us. We always say when we go there that we’re going home and they’re going to take care of us, and I trust all the doctors and nurses there. We’re glad that we can leave Mayo, because other people don’t get to, but when we go, it feels like home.”
Turning a potential negative into a positive is what Addison Gralund does best and thus her interest in the medical field was born.
“I want to either go to nursing school or I want to do my four years undergraduate and go on to medical school. My cardiologist at the Mayo Clinic asked if I wanted to come up there and intern with him. If I decide to go to medical school, I could intern with my own surgeon in the catheterization laboratory.
“The Mayo Clinic has a medical school now and they admit students who have a passionate story for medicine. And my surgeon said I would be right in that group, so if I feel I have a rite of passage into their medical school. If that opportunity presents itself then I’m going to take it. I would love to work in the catheterization laboratory or be a heart surgeon.”
And once she sets her mind to a task, rest assured she will accomplish it.
She currently works at St. Mark’s Hospital in Cedar Rapids, Iowa as a patient care technician and certified nursing assistant on the cardiac/telemetry floor.
“This floor is cardiac, and I work it for a reason,” she said. “I’ve been personally influenced by cardiac care and that helps my care for patients even more.”
Gralund has also taken advantage of a program at her high school and is currently taking college classes. By the time she graduates high school next year she will have completed two full years of college classes.
Paging Dr. Gralund.
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The Addison Gralund story would not be complete without softball. It’s been a part of her life since she was 6 years old.
The softball road has had bumps and given her medical background it is easy to understand why, but it is a game she loves.
“My sister Hannah has been a big inspiration for me. She grew up playing softball and watching her made me want to play. So, I’m like, I’m going to play. And the minute I picked up a glove and a bat for the first time, I was just like, this is my jam.
“Softball teaches you more than just a game. It teaches you how to be a teammate, a leader, how to be coachable. That was a big thing for me, I love the ability to be coachable. I found it to be bigger than just a game and I think that’s why I connected so well with it.”
Ben Gralund has seen her growth and resiliency on the softball field.
“She’s driven. I think of all the kids that have never had to have their chest cut open and go through medical procedures. Those kids don’t have to bounce back from having everything you have gained you end up losing because you’re in recovery. Those kids never have to do that. She’s done that and more and she performs at a high level. She just continues to get stronger.”
Addison Gralund echoes the sentiments of her father, but also is focused on her why.
“I have learned the strength it takes to come back. It is difficult to go through open-heart surgery and then face recovery. But I never had the feeling of giving up. I wanted my glove. I wanted my bat. Let me get back.
“And I think something important to remember is my why. Why do I play this sport? Why do I want to play this sport? And it’s because I play for myself. I play for me and all the other people who might be in the hospital and don’t get to play this sport who look up to kids who get to play the sport. I’m fortunate enough to play it. That’s also why I play it for the kids who can’t. So, I just love the sport.”
Gralund is hopeful that she can continue her softball career in college.
“I really want to go play in college. That’s been my dream to play on a college field with your sisters. I want to be able to play softball, but also be able to be in the healthcare field. I know that combination can be hard, but I know some colleges make it work.”
And Gralund has hopefully found the solution to helping her achieve her dreams of playing collegiate softball in the form of her new club team, Iowa Gold Hasseltine and head coach Ryan Hesseltine.
“I want to have a coach and a coaching staff who is going to push me to be a good athlete. I started going to practice in January, so we drive to Des Moines twice a week. My parents are all in for it. They want me to have this love.
“And still even from the first practice, I don’t know what it is, but I found that love again. Ryan and his coaching staff just brought the spark right back. He’s an amazing coach, and I don’t even think he knows what he’s done for me. But it’s amazing. I can’t explain it. So, I’m really excited for the next journey, getting to play this spring, getting to play this summer. And then travel with my team.”
Under the direction of a new coaching staff, Gralund has set about improving her game both in the circle, at the plate and on the field.
“I’ve been working on my screwball. I just got introduced to it the last couple of weeks, so it’s new to me. And I’ve been working on throwing my change up. Hitting wise, I’m somebody who rarely strikes out, but I’m really working on being more selective at the plate and waiting for my pitch.”
While Gralund continues to fine tune her game in pursuit of a college career, her parents could not be prouder of her.
“She really is my hero. I mean, she’s who I look up to and she’s so resilient. She can do really hard things. And those really hard things are helping her today in the various challenges that she has encountered at school, on a softball team, at work, in life and with friends,” said Kris Gralund. “She’s had to have some tough conversations with some folks at school, some administrators at school, from human resource departments to athletic directors to coaches. And she makes her notes, and she walks right in there all by herself and owns it and manages it. But she’s kind of got life by the tail.”
“My wife got a text not too long ago from a colleague. And it was a short, quick note, but it was the idea that Addie stopped to ask how his daughter was doing because his daughter had surgery,” said Ben Gralund. “And the fact that she’s aware enough, and willing, to stop and ask about others makes us super proud.”
To Ben and Kris Gralund, get ready because there will be plenty more proud moments to come.
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About the American Heart Association
From humble beginnings, the American Heart Association has grown into the nation’s oldest and largest voluntary organization dedicated to fighting heart disease and stroke. A shared focus on cardiovascular health unites our more than 35 million volunteers and supporters as well as our more than 2,900 employees.
Heart disease is the No. 1 killer worldwide, and stroke ranks second globally. Even when those conditions don’t result in death, they cause disability and diminish quality of life. We want to see a world free of cardiovascular diseases and stroke.
Our size and scope let us have real impact. The AHA has invested more than $5 billion in research, making us the largest not-for-profit funding source for cardiovascular and cerebrovascular disease research next to the federal government. Learn more about our life-changing funded research breakthroughs.
Donations can be made via the American Heart Association website.
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