2023 Bank of America Chicago Marathon

This year I have decided to run the Bank of America Chicago Marathon. The charity I am running for is March of Dimes which is an organization dedicated to the care of infants born prematurely. This charity has helped my family in many ways. Some people might not know, but on November 27, 2018 my wife and I welcomed our first child Daniel Jose.  He arrived five weeks early after Emily’s emergency C-section, weighing 4-pounds and 8 ounces, and he was immediately rushed to the Neonatal Intensive Care Unit at Advocate Christ Medical Center where he remained for two weeks.  While he was in the NICU, he went from having a breathing tube and a feeding tube to being able to breathe and eat on his own. Four years later, Danny is healthier than ever. Fast Forward to November 1, 2022, our sweet Penelope Louise was born. Emily and Penelope had a long but great birth, and we were sent home after 24 hours. At Penelope’s first doctor visit, the doctor wanted to test her bilirubin due to her skin and eye coloring. Penelope’s bilirubin levels were elevated so the Doctor advised us to seek treatment. After numerous hours in the intake room, we were told Penelope was going to be sent to the NICU to get her bilirubin levels back to normal. Even though Emily and I were devasted that we were back in the hospital, we had a sense of relief knowing Penelope was going to the NICU that took such good care of her older brother. After a quick 18 hours in the NICU, Penelope was sent home with her bilirubin levels back to normal. For these instances, I have decided to run the marathon in support of March of Dimes in honor of our experience with the NICU at Christ and the amazing care that our children received.  We have two healthy children, and we could not be more grateful to NICU nurses and doctors for everything they did for us.