Thank you for taking the time to visit our Walk for Babies fundraising page to benefit the NICU Akron Children’s Hospital.

In 2017, Walk for Babies hit a mile stone of over $1 Million dollars raised since 2008.  Without the support of community members like you, Akron Children’s Hospital would not be able to supply the needed assistance to patients and their families in the neonatal intensive care unit (NICU). Akron Children's Hospital's NICU treats 1,800 children annually and is nationally ranked according to U.S News & World Report.

Walk for Babies was created by one family and now has the support of over 1,700 participants, plus their friends and family. As we look towards the future, our goal is to continue to create a community event that makes an impact on local patients for many years to come. 

Akron Children’s Hospital is the largest pediatric healthcare provider in Northeast Ohio and provides care through more than 1,100,000 outpatient visits per year. Care is delivered at hospital campuses in Akron and the Mahoning Valley or in one of 27 pediatrician offices or 80 pediatric specialty locations across the region. Through gifts like yours, the hospital is able to purchase vital medical equipment, offer programs that bring extra comfort to families during difficult times and fund innovative research that helps identify new ways of diagnosing and treating illnesses. 

Our Story: When pregnant with our first child, I ended up getting severe pre-eclampsia. The pre-eclampsia came very sudden and Zeala was unfortunately born at thirty weeks and weighing only two pounds ten ounces. She was immediately taken to Akron Children's and spent a total of three months in the NICU. Both Dr.s and nurses who worked in the NICU did an amazing job getting Zeala out of the hospital and where she is at today. Living in the NICU, is extremely stressful, as stated above, Akron Children's Hospital got enough donations from last years "Walk for babies" that all the rooms in the NICU got a camera called the NICVIEW. We had a camera in Zeala's room and let me tell you it was a blessing being able to just log into your phone and see your baby when you had to step away. Akron Children's NICU, is truly a blessing to have when your baby is born prematurely, the nurses will go out of their way to help you with whatever sources you need. Please if you can, any donation big or small will make a difference in these babies and their family's life, the camera helped give us a peace of mind, and we can only imagine what else they can do with more donations to come. 

Thank you for your support of Akron Children’s mission and dedication to improving the health of the communities served.  We look forward to you joining us on Sunday, September 17, 2023. 

As we progress in my fundraising endeavors, We hope that you check back frequently for updates and stories of patients in our communities.