This little boy singing to his baby brother with D.own S.yndrome is enough to melt any heart. But the inspiring story behind their brotherly bond will have your heart positively bursting! 6-year-old Rayce Powell knows his baby brother, Tripp, is a miracle. When Nicole Powell went to bed after posting to Facebook a cute photo of her 6-year-old son singing to his baby brother, it had 10 shares. “Oh, that’s nice,” she said, recalling her thoughts on “Good Morning America.” But the next morning when she woke up, the post exploded and had been viewed more than 1 million times. Now the whole world knows it, too!
The Powell family is from Arkansas. And the love they share for each other has caught the attention of folks far and wide. When their youngest member, Tripp Powell, was born with D.own S.yndrome, he had to spend some time in the Intensive Care Unit. And the sweet boy had already had to fight so hard to get here. “They [doctors] recommended we terminate the pregnancy,” Tripp’s father, JJ Grieves, explained. “And I said absolutely not.”
Tripp’s parents knew what a blessing he was. But they worried how their other 2 sons might respond to their brother’s D.own S.yndrome diagnosis. “I didn’t want our boys to be ashamed of him,” mom Nicole Powell said. “Because he’s still their little brother regardless of what he has.” But based on a video that Nicole shared on Facebook of 6-year-old Rayce Powell singing to his baby brother, there was no need to worry! Tripp’s brothers had no trouble accepting him just as he is.
When JJ and Nicole explained to the boys about their baby brother’s Down Syndrome diagnosis, Rayce had the best reaction. “Aren’t we all a little different?” he asked. The whole family, including Rayce, would visit Tripp every day at the hospital until he was ready to come home. And the bond between the siblings was strong. The proud big brother picked a “song” for his baby bro, Powell said – “10,000 hours” by Dan + Shay and mom couldn’t resist sharing the sweet moment online. “This is how Rayce bonds with Tripp,” she said. “He sings to him all the time. He swears this song is about him and his brother.”
