Our New Place
to Float, Heal,
and Connect
GMCH Annual Report | 2025
17
In August 2025, we completed the Betty Higgins 
Palliative Aquatic Center, a space thoughtfully 
designed to provide comfort, connection, and 
healing. Replacing a much smaller Jacuzzi®-style 
pool, the new warm-water aquatic center allows 
children and young adults greater freedom of 
movement and more meaningful therapeutic 
experiences—all supported by registered nurses 
specially trained in pediatric palliative care.
In the warm water, pain lessens, muscles relax, 
and breathing calms. Children who are 
wheelchair-bound can experience weightlessness 
and  the therapeutic sensation of floating. Parents 
who participate in hydrotherapy sessions with 
their children often say the water brings out a 
special kind of smile they don’t see anywhere else.
The aquatic center is one of the most significant 
capital projects since our founding, made possible 
through extraordinary generosity of the Wings of 
Freedom Foundation and many other supporters. 
The spa reflects our shared belief that quality of life 
matters as much as medical care, and that healing 
environments help create  peace and lasting 
memories.

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