‘Little House on the Prairie’: Baby Grace Actor Wendi Lou Lee Revealed the Health Crisis That Strengthened Her Faith
Michael Landon had to cast several child actors when he launched Little House on the Prairie in 1974. Wendi Lou Lee landed the role of Grace Ingalls as a toddler, switching off with her twin sister Brenda on playing the part. Lee shared some treasured memories from her time on the historical drama and also revealed her battle with a recent medical issue.
Wendi Lou Lee suffered from a brain tumor
In a 2019 interview, Lee explained how she experienced headaches, dizziness, mental confusion, and memory loss for over a month in 2015. Doctors finally discovered she had a brain tumor. Though the diagnosis was frightening, Lee felt some peace in finding the source of the problem.
“Honestly, the six weeks before were so terrible that I was feeling like I might never get better,” Lee told Fox News. “So I just wanted an answer. When I found out there was a brain tumor and it was operable, I was relieved. I just felt like there was some kind of hope for me to finally get better.”
A devout Christian, Lee leaned on her faith to carry her through the surgery. The Little House alum described regaining consciousness post-op.
“I went into my surgery very excited and hopeful that God was going to take charge,” she explained. “But when I woke up from surgery, I was not your typical patient waking up. I was very exuberant and telling stories. I remember telling my family this was the best day of my life, which is rather strange that I would say that.”
‘Faith played a huge role’ according to ‘Little House’ alum
Lee shared how she struggled physically before her surgery and throughout her recovery, leaning on God throughout the tough times.
“Faith played a huge role,” she remarked. “Before my surgery, I was so hopeless. I kept praying to Him and saying, ‘I need you, please be with me’. … This was the hardest thing I had to deal with. At the time, I felt like this was another storm that I was walking through. The best thing that I can do in this situation is just trust that God knows what He’s doing.”
The former Little House actor kept a specific Bible verse on hand to bolster her faith and provide comfort when she was discouraged. Though she still experiences headaches, Lee made a full recovery and gets annual scans to keep an eye on her health.
“I just kept going back to the verse in Romans 15:13 which is ‘May the God of hope fill you with all joy and peace as you trust in Him, so that you may overflow with hope by the power of the Holy Spirit’,” Lee said. “You may not be experiencing any joy or peace in that moment of your life, but trust that God has a plan. And after surgery, I was so joyful and so at peace – more than really what made sense. And I think that’s because I put my trust in God.”
Michael Landon was a ‘father figure’
Lee reflected on her four seasons on Little House and the bond she had with the cast. She raved of Landon’s kindness and fatherly demeanor on set.
“Michael was just amazing,” she commented. “We were really little so we didn’t have the same memories that other cast members had. But I just remember thinking that he was basically my dad. My dad wasn’t really in the picture when we were on the show. … [Landon] was just great fun to be around. He really was like a father figure and very engaged with all of us. … we were all very close.”
