Love Runneth Over Charity: Support NICU Families

Supporting NICU Familes

Our Story

Audra Sky Firestone

Was born 3 months early at 1 pound 11 ounces via an emergency c-section. She was immediately intubated, put on a ventilator, and sent to the Neonatal ICU. We spent the next 346 days by her side in 4 different hospitals as she fought to survive.

While Audra’s body struggled greatly, her spirit thrived because of the consistent loving presence of her family and community.

Her situation was dire from the beginning, but she defied expectations time and time again. We know and were told repeatedly by nurses, doctors, and specialists that it was our steadfast presence, touch, and advocacy that allowed her to grow strong enough to come home. There is no greater comfort to us as her parents than knowing that we spent every possible minute with her and gave her the best quality of life in the short time she was with us.

We want all NICU babies to be so well-cared for.

Carrie Tells Our Story

It is impossible for NICU parents to adequately advocate for their babies’ care without being there.

Emergencies are common in the NICU. How can a parent be expected to make well-informed life-or-death decisions for their child over the phone with a doctor they have never met, let alone gotten to know well enough to trust? Yet, this is exactly what happens every day for so many families who do not have the financial security that allowed us to drop everything and be with Audra.

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When parents are able to be present in the NICU, babies do so much better.

There is no substitute for skin-to-skin contact with their parents, especially their mothers. The cold, loud, sterile NICU environment is abrasive and scary for tiny, fragile babies, and that is amplified for preemies, who under normal circumstances would still be in the womb. The warmth of their mother’s skin, the sound of her voice, rhythm of her heartbeat, and the smell of her milk let them know that they are loved and they are safe in a way that nothing else can.

In rural areas like ours where the drive to the hospital may be a couple hours away, many parents want to be at their babies’ bedsides but are not able to because of financial and logistical constraints. We were fortunate to have the means to completely rearrange our lives to be with Audra all the time, and those countless hours we were able to spend with her take on even greater meaning for us now that she is gone.

Our hearts break for the families who do not have this opportunity simply because of lack of resources. No parent should have to choose between putting food on the table and being with their sick baby, yet the reality is that most people cannot afford to take extended time off of work and still be able to cover basic monthly expenses like food, rent, and gas.

That’s where you can help!

We invite you to be one of Audra’s Angels

Join us in providing the financial support that makes it possible for NICU parents to be with their babies and give them their best chance in life.

Love Runneth Over is a 501c3 and all donations are tax deductible