At our 20-week anatomy scan, we learned that our son had a unilateral complete cleft lip and palate. From that moment, our journey shifted as we were referred to the Children’s Hospital of Philadelphia for extensive testing and to meet with their incredible plastics team about the surgeries he’ll need. Our son was born on December 17th, and within an hour, he was rushed to the NICU due to difficulty breathing and rapid breathing. Since then, he has been transferred from St. Luke’s NICU to the Children’s Hospital of Philadelphia NICU, where he receives help with breathing and a feeding tube. Despite two weeks in the NICU, we still haven’t received answers about what is wrong, and we don’t know when we will.

We are deeply grateful for the doctors and nurses caring for our son, but the emotional and financial toll of a prolonged NICU stay has been overwhelming. Between time away from work unsure when we are able to return, travel to and from the hospital, and basic living costs, it is starting to become more than we can manage alone. We are taking things one day at a time, celebrating every small victory and staying hopeful for the day we can finally bring our baby home.

Any donation, share, or prayer means more to our family than words can express. Thank you for supporting our son and standing with us during this incredibly difficult time.