Nelly The Resilient! Help Baby Nelly Thrive

Diana Brailovsky is organizing this fundraiser on behalf of Philip Moss.

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My name is Diana Brailovsky and I am Nelly's godmother and a long-time friend of Ally & Philip Moss, some of the most kind-hearted and loving people I know. As many of you know, Ally and Phil were eagerly waiting to welcome baby Nelly into the world this past summer when life threw their family a devastating curveball:

Penelope “Nelly” Ann Moss was born on July 14th, 2022 at her home in Clarksburg, MD. Nelly had a difficult start to life as she had a complicated birth and was rushed to the hospital, where she was stabilized. Once stabilized, Nelly was transferred to the NICU at Children’s National Hospital in Washington, DC.

Nelly was diagnosed with Hypoxic ischemic encephalopathy (HIE). HIE is a neonatal brain injury that occurs when a baby's brain doesn't receive enough oxygen. To protect Nelly, the Children’s National Hospital medical team began a cooling procedure that lasted for 72 hours. Following the three days, Nelly was warmed up and put her body into action, organ by organ.

Nelly’s recovery had many ups, downs, and everything in between. She suffered a kidney injury, a collapsed lung, and severe wounds, to name a few of the challenges. However, our resilient Nelly fought each battle like the champion that she is. Slowly, Nelly was weened off of the medicines & drugs and began to shed her life-support machines. Penelope Ann left Children’s National following eight weeks of treatment and is now enjoying life outside of the hospital.

The long-term effects of her experience are unknown. Nelly was diagnosed with injury to two parts of her brain and damage to her eyes. Nelly is expected to undergo operations on her eyes as well as coordinate with multiple specialists to develop her cognitive and physical abilities.

Nelly’s parents have received many kind messages throughout the early weeks of Nelly’s life asking ‘how can I help?’ - this GoFundMe will provide practical aid for her family as they pay for her medical expenses at the hospital as well as upcoming costs with specialists.

Nelly’s family would like everyone reading this to know, that despite all of the dark moments and future unknowns, Nelly’s story is one of happiness and hope - the overwhelming love they received from their community nearby and at a distance pushed Nelly’s family on when they needed it most, thank you . Nelly’s family would also like to thank all of the medical professionals that diligently worked to identify the problems, provide a solution, and treat her with kindness and love throughout. Nelly’s family’s faith in humanity hasn’t been stronger. Thank you.

In addition to the emotional stress that Nelly's family has had to live through, there is also financial stress in this situation. If you are lucky to know Ally & Phil, you know how kind and selfless they are and that they will hesitate to ask for financial help themselves. Because of this, I am asking for financial help to alleviate at least some of the stress for their family. With your help, Nelly's parents will be able to focus on truly helping baby Nelly overcome her medical challenges & THRIVE even after her difficult start in life.