March of Dimes hosts first-ever Run for Babies helping to fight premature birth; event expected to become annual event
On Saturday, Nov. 5, in the SRC Arena at Onondaga Community College, hundreds of families and company teams will join together in the March for Babies and new this year, Run for Babies—the first run to help raise funds for premature birth.
About 4 million babies were born in the United States last year, and the March of Dimes has helped each and every one through research, vaccines, education, and breakthroughs. Join us at March for Babies, the best-loved walking event in the country, along with The Conde Family, our 2016 March of Dimes Ambassador Family.
Heather and Sam Conde were excited to be expecting their second child, who was due to be born two days after Christmas in 2013. Two days before Halloween Heather developed severe preeclampsia and HELLP syndrome and the Conde’s baby had to be delivered by an emergency C section at Crouse Hospital. Their son Charlie was born at 31 weeks, 9 weeks early, weighing 3 pounds, 2 ounces. Charlie required treatment with surfactant and respiratory support for the first 11 days of his life, before he could breathe on his own.
While in the NICU, Charlie also had to be treated for jaundice. After spending 35 days in the NICU Charlie was able to go home.
Today Charlie is a happy and healthy 2-year-old. The Condes realize that many of the life-saving treatments Charlie received were created through March of Dimes research. Their family is dedicated to making sure other families have the same happy ending and they want to ask others to join them by supporting the Syracuse March and Run for Babies.
Registration for the Syracuse Run for Babies begins at 8:30 a.m. with the certified 5k run kicking off at 9:30 a.m. at the SRC Arena at Onondaga Community College Nov. 5, 2016. Immediately following the run will be the March for Babies. To register for the Run for Babies, visit www.runforbabies.org/Syracuse for more details. For questions, call the March of Dimes office at (315) 463-0700.
Funds raised by Run for Babies in New York help support prenatal wellness programs, research grants, newborn intensive care unit (NICU) family support programs and advocacy efforts for stronger, healthier babies.
Premature birth is the most urgent infant health problem in the U.S. today. It affects nearly half a million babies each year, including 28,000 in New York. The March of Dimes is committed to funding research to find the answers to problems that continue to threaten the lives and the health of babies.