Hi everyone!
I am so excited to run the 2024 NYC Marathon with Team Andi!
Last year, my twin sister, Alex, and I ran the 2023 NYC Marathon for the first time with Team Andi, and it was such a fun and special day and truly amazing to raise money for a cause that is close to our hearts.
For those of you who do not know, Alex and I were born very premature at 28.5 weeks – that is about 3 months earlier than we were expected. Weighing just around 2-3 lbs each, we spent months in the Neonatal Intensive Care Unit (NICU) receiving around-the-clock care in order to survive and grow strong enough to acquire basic functions on our own, such as breathing and swallowing.
Team Andi is raising money for the NICU at Mount Sinai to build private, comforting rooms for parents to spend intimate time with their newborn babies who are confined to the hospital. This bonding time is crucial for all families but is often difficult to experience in the NICU due to the constant bright lights, the abrupt sound of medical equipment, and an unavoidable lack of privacy. Parents need this early bonding time with their premature babies to learn how to communicate with each other in anticipation of the day when they can leave the hospital and care for their newborns, many with ongoing health challenges, without the medical team at their side.
We wouldn't be where we are today without the exceptional care the NICU doctors, nurses, and specialists provided to us and our parents.
I would appreciate any contribution towards my goal of $4,500 to help the many premature newborns and their families at Mount Sinai NICU enjoy spending time together as a family in an intimate setting during such a challenging and crucial time.
Thank you so much!!
Abby