2025 Black Ties for Babies Boston

We joined the March of Dimes movement to create positive change for moms and babies everywhere—especially those most at risk.

With rising rates of preterm birth and maternal mortality, we are committed to raising funds to help every family get the best possible start. Our story is deeply personal; all three of our children were born unexpectedly early and increasingly premature.

In September 2019, our son Henry was born at 34 weeks and 6 days. Despite his early arrival, he spent only one night in the NICU and came home with us on time at 5lbs. Other than setting alarms to feed our little newborn every three hours, we "got off easy" relatively speaking. We never learned exactly why he came early and assumed, naively, that his early birth was a fluke.

In 2021, during my second pregnancy, I had the fortune of avoiding all morning sickness and nausea but on the Tuesday after Memorial Day, everything changed. I began feeling discomfort after work and eventually called my doctor who suggested we head to Beth Israel. We expected to be home in a few hours, but instead upon arrival at triage, we were told I was fully dilated, our baby was breech, and I needed an emergency C-section immediately. There was no time for medication to help the baby's lungs or brain. At 29 weeks and 3 days, our second son Patrick was born at 3lbs 2oz under intense, chaotic circumstances. 

Patrick spent 81 days in the NICU at Beth Israel. We were thrust into a world of medical terminology, monitors, alarms, and daily uncertainty. I spent every day beside him and every night crying after leaving him at the hospital. COVID rules meant our 20 month old Henry couldn’t visit or understand why we had to be apart. The nurses and doctors became our lifeline, and through their care, Patrick came home in August 2021—a thriving, resilient little fighter.

In 2023, we met with the maternal fetal medicine team to discuss the possibility of a third child. We took every precaution with weekly ultrasounds, medications, and lifestyle adjustments but in August 2024, while vacationing in Maine, I woke with a familiar pit in my stomach. We drove straight to Beth Israel, leaving our boys behind. There, we learned I was 4cm dilated and in labor again, this time at 26 weeks.

The team acted quickly, giving me betamethasone for lung development and magnesium sulfate for the baby’s brain protection. Within hours, our baby's heart rate dropped, and a C-section was determined to be the safest path forward. At 4:38 PM, our tiny 1lb 13oz daughter Catherine was born. She was the smallest, most fragile being I had ever seen in my life. She was barely the length of my hand but somehow miraculously perfectly proportioned. In a dejavu scenario, she was intubated and whisked to the NICU with Geoff and the team and I was left alone in the delivery room for the third time in 5 years wondering how this could possibly have happened again and feeling guilty that I had put my family and my babies in this position.

Catherine’s start mirrored Patrick’s; fragile, vulnerable, and full of unknowns. We spent 107 days in the NICU, watching summer turn to fall, then winter. Similar to our time with Patrick, the only way for me to get through this impossible time was to be present in the hospital and by Catherine's side every waking moment for her journey. Each small milestone felt like a victory. I attended daily rounds, advocated for her care, and stayed grounded in hope by remembering Patrick’s journey.

Finally, on the eve of Thanksgiving, we brought Catherine home. Our crew of nurses and doctors at Beth Israel gathered to send us off with tears and cheers, a powerful full-circle moment for our family of five. 

We are forever grateful for the exceptional care we received at Beth Israel and we know not all families have access to this level of maternal and neonatal support. Please visit our fundraising page to make a donation. Together we’ll be part of a movement to ensure that every mom and baby is healthy.