Recently, Judianne had the wonderful opportunity to serve as the photojournalist for this year’s March of Dimes March for Babies Team Captain Kick-off Breakfast. While the Greater Portland chapter has held many such events in the past, the committee had never been able to “record” them in any fashion due to the need to take care of their many other responsibilities. It was our privilege this year to be able to provide these services.
Many of you probably know about this wonderful organization. You may also be familiar with their annual fundraiser – Walk America – which is now called March for Babies. We wonder, though, how many of you have been touched by the stories of the women, children, and families changed by premature birth?
As parents, we all have “challenging” days with our children – we can admit to that, right? “Challenging”, however, has a completely different meaning for those parents affected by premature birth. Days where mom gives birth at 25 weeks (instead of 40) to a one pound baby that has to fight harder than any child ever should just to stay alive. That traumatic event, if the baby survives, will be followed by days, weeks, or months in the NICU. For those babies strong enough to survive this initial ordeal, they may still face a long line of seemingly never-ending invasive surgeries just to stay alive.
Once you hear these heartbreaking stories from the people living them, you gain an appreciation for life. You also gain an understanding why it is so important to support the work of the March of Dimes and its mission: to improve the health of babies by preventing birth defects, premature birth and infant mortality.
March for Babies will be taking place all over the state this Spring. The Portland walk is scheduled on Sunday, May 4th at Andover College. For more information on participating in your local walk or otherwise supporting this amazing cause, please contact Jere Hoover via email at JHoover@marchofdimes.org or by calling (207) 878-1199. This year's goal for the Greater Portland Chapter is $125,000. Together - we can make a difference.
