Audrey Rose Walker is a living, breathing miracle. You see, Audrey wasn't supposed to be inspiring people, but she's doing so everyday. She wasn't supposed to be a walking example of courage, but here she is. In fact, Audrey wasn't even supposed to survive her birth, but today she's an amazing 9-year old girl.
When Jim and Heather Walker went to get an initial ultrasound on their expected baby, they were given news that no loving parents want or deserve to hear. Their doctor's informed them that the baby would be born dead or, if lucky, come out blue and need immediate life-saving surgery. Against all odds, Audrey survived her birth, and came out pink and crying. All was not well however, as Audrey still faced significant challenges with her health and overall survival.
Audrey was born with severe heart disease and Bilateral Anophthalmia (the absence of eyeballs). The Walker's were told that Audrey would die before the age of two if surgeries didn't work. In his research, Audrey's father Jim came across Dr. Frank Hanley who was 30 minutes away at Stanford's Lucille Packard's Children's hospital. Dr. Hanley had developed a procedure called Unifocalization which he used on Audrey in order to save her life. In this procedure, misdirected blood vessels are rerouted into a single vessel (or into the pulmonary artery if it's present), which is then attached to the right ventricle of the heart through a conduit called a homograft. This restores the normal circulation from the lungs to the heart. After that, the hole in the ventricle wall is repaired. This type of surgery is very complex, can take up to 10 hours, and generally keeps the patient in the hospital for weeks. Overall, Audrey endured three open heart surgeries, several heart catheterizations, and other associated procedures. She also came close to dying after her throat closed in the hospital, but was saved by Dr. Peter Koltai who, miraculously, just happened to be walking by.
Despite her early trials, Audrey persevered and was talking at seven months old. By the time she was 17 months, she was not only singing, but was able to belt out complete songs.
Audrey's courage is an inspiration to all she comes across, and she's developed a strong bond to so many people throughout her life because of it. One special bond just happens to be with her favorite football team, the San Francisco 49ers. Audrey belongs to Camp Taylor, which is a free, medically supervised camp for Children with heart disease. The camp asked Audrey to go on stage with Niner's quarterback Colin Kaepernick at his 2nd Annual 'Against All Odds' Golf Tournament. With no idea of what was going to happen, Audrey took the stage and wowed the crowd and Colin with her humor and personality. She even asked Kaepernick if he would "marry her," which was a touching moment that brought smiles to all involved.
Audrey has also used her singing ability to touch lives, as she's sung the National Anthem at various events including Antoine Bethea's Celebrity Softball game. Bethea had advertised that he was looking for a singer on Twitter, and Audrey's father submitted her name. The family was very thankful she was chosen for the event.
Despite her making the most of life, Audrey is still faced with daily challenges no one, especially a young child, should have to endure. Her blindness makes daily life difficult, as she has a hard time getting around, often hurting herself in the process. She is totally dependent on other people for her safety and security and it's taken an emotional toll on her. Through all of this, Audrey's dad says she never complains and she has a "wonderful, positive personality." She is constantly thinking about other people, and even asked to be a Make A Wish worker so she could help other kids be happy. Make a Wish motivated Audrey to do a little something for herself as well, and she will meet the 49ers on October 2nd!
While Audrey will never be able to see, there are still ways she can enhance her daily experiences, and that's where the caring and compassion of the public comes in. Please take a look at Audrey's "Go Fund Me" page, and read through what her father has written about her (it definitely moved me). You can tell she comes from a loving, supportive family, but could also use some items to help with her day-to-day.
It's people like Audrey that make this world all the more special, and there's no doubt she's here to serve a purpose. Let's make her story of struggle and triumph as well known as possible, as she's truly an inspiration.
Al Sacco has been covering the 49ers since 2013, and has had his work used by national outlets such as ESPN and USA TODAY. If you'd like to reach Al with a media request, please contact him via Twitter @AlSacco49
The opinions within this article are those of the writer and, while just as important, are not necessarily those of the site as a whole.
PFF's highest- and lowest-graded 49ers players vs. Giants, plus snap counts
By David Bonilla
Sep 22
The San Francisco 49ers improved their record to 3-0 after a 30-12 win against the New York Giants in Week 3. Today, Pro Football Focus released its grades from the game. Which Niners played well, and who has more work to do?
Below are Pro Football Focus' five highest-graded 49ers players on offense against the Giants.
Deebo Samuel, WR, 88.6, 68 snaps
Ronnie Bell, WR, 80.7, 31 snaps
Trent Williams, LT, 76.4, 79 snaps
George Kittle, TE, 75.8, 69 snaps
Jordan Mason, RB, 74.5, 4 snaps
Below are the five highest-graded 49ers players on defense.
Javon Hargrave, DT, 93.0, 34 snaps
Nick Bosa, DE, 92.8, 39 snaps
Arik Armstead, DT, 91.5, 36 snaps
Oren Burks,
49ers agree to multi-year contract extensions with Kyle Shanahan and John Lynch
By David Bonilla
Sep 22
The San Francisco 49ers plan to keep the band together for a long time. The team announced that it has agreed to multi-year contract extensions with head coach Kyle Shanahan and general manager John Lynch.
Details of the contracts are currently unknown. Before the new deals, Shanahan had been signed through the 2025 season, while Lynch was locked up through the 2024 season. They will now remain with the team longer than that.
The 49ers Communications staff provided the following rundown.
The duo joined the 49ers in February of 2017 and have since led the organization to the postseason three times, claimed two NFC West division titles (2019 & 2022), reached three NFC Championship games (2019 & 2021-22) and a trip to Super Bowl
49ers practice and media schedule leading to Week 4 matchup vs. Cardinals
By Site Staff
Sep 25
The San Francisco 49ers will hold four full practices this week as the team prepares for its Week 4 matchup against the Arizona Cardinals.
Head coach Kyle Shanahan, defensive coordinator Steve Wilks, offensive line/run game coordinator Chris Foerster, and quarterback Brock Purdy are scheduled to speak with the media. The 49ers will make the press conferences available at 49ers.com, on the team's official mobile app, and YouTube page.
The schedule, which is subject to change, for the upcoming week is below. All times are
Jauan Jennings: 49ers offense is "shaking and baking"
By David Bonilla
Sep 26
Usually, the San Francisco 49ers defense gets all the notoriety. However, with the Niners scoring 30 points per game, the offense is showing that it can be just as formidable.
Jauan Jennings has four receptions for 82 yards, which ranks fourth on the team behind Deebo Samuel, Brandon Aiyuk, and George Kittle. Jennings' 20.5 yards per reception lead the 49ers, and his 5.0 yards after the catch rank second among the team's wide receivers (Samuel, 7.9).
Jennings was recently asked to share how much fun the offense has been having this season while possibly stealing some of the spotlight from the team's tough defense.
"Now we out here shaking and baking, man," Jennings said via NBC Sports Bay Area. "That's what we do. We get in the end zone. I feel like