Evanston senior-to-be with cerebral palsy perseveres in pool, on track – Chicago Tribune

It was Aaron Holzmueller's first time in the high school pool, and things didn't go as planned.

Holzmueller has cerebral palsy, a neurological disorder of movement, muscle tone or posture caused by damage to the brain, most often before birth, according to the Mayo Clinic website. Seizures had been part of Holzmueller's childhood, yet when he entered the Evanston Township High School pool in early May 2013 a week before his 13th birthday, he hadn't had one in 11 years.

But there was a recurrence during the practice with the feeder team.

Holzmueller had a seizure underwater, and Evanston assistant swimming coach Joe Springer jumped in to save the then-seventh-grader. Holzmueller was loaded into an ambulance and rushed to the hospital. Wildkits swimming coach Kevin Auger called Holzmueller's father, Keith, who relayed the news to Holzmueller's mother, Birdy.

"On the way down to Lurie, I got another call from (Springer), he wanted to check in," Birdy Holzmueller said. "He said, 'You know, I hope this doesn't keep him from coming out to swim again, because he's one of our Wildkits now.'

"So here we are, I had just reassured them that he hadn't had seizures in years and years, he has one and they're calling to make sure he stays around. They've gone out of their way to make it both safe and enjoyable for him to participate."

Aaron Holzmueller, an Evanston resident, returned to the pool in August 2013 with the doctor's permission. Since entering high school, he has qualified for the IHSA state swimming meet in the athletes with disabilities division each of his first three seasons.

"The state meet is one of my favorite weekends of the year, for sure," said Aaron Holzmueller, a senior-to-be at Evanston. "The atmosphere is just incredible."

As a participant in swimming, track and cross country at Evanston, Aaron Holzmueller remains plenty active. But because of the hurdles he's already had to face, Birdy Holzmueller is quick to point out her appreciation that her son hasn't had a seizure since May 2013.

As far as running, Aaron Holzmueller has been doing so competitively since fourth grade. He's run with older brother Nathan who was captain of Evanston's cross country team in Aaron Holzmueller's sophomore season as well, and plans to again run on the team as a senior.

Aaron Holzmueller also swims and runs in the Great Lakes Adaptive Sports Association, which is based in Lake Forest. The organization describes its mission as to "promote and support the optimal development and well-being of youth, adults and military veterans who have a physical or visual disability through the provision of inclusive recreation, fitness and competitive sports activities."

Aaron Holzmueller ran in the Adult National Open and Great Lakes Regional Games on June 9-11, held at Lake Forest High School and Loyola Academy. As a 17-year-old male with cerebral palsy in the T36 classification, Aaron Holzmueller is only judged against those of similar ability. In this particular meet, he was the lone participant in each of his events the 400-meter dash (1 minute, 26.92 seconds) and 800 (3:09.99) and and thus, finished first in each.

GLASA is like "how some able-bodies athlete would have a club team or AAU," Aaron Holzmueller said. He's been a member since he was 9 years old.

"I enjoy it a lot, because before GLASA, I didn't really know I could compete with other people who had cerebral palsy," Aaron Holzmueller said. "And it's allowed me to compete.

"I get to meet people from all over the country, some are facing the same difficulties as you, but are also trying to reach the same goals. It's been a great experience."

Rich Mayor is a freelance reporter for Pioneer Press.

Twitter @Pioneer_Press

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Evanston senior-to-be with cerebral palsy perseveres in pool, on track - Chicago Tribune