March of Dimes walk brings Tampa Bay families together to raise awareness for premature births

TAMPA, Fla. - It’s a walk where every step counts. 

FOX13 teamed up with the March of Dimes "March for Babies," bringing the Tampa Bay community together for a mile-and-a-half walk to raise awareness about premature births, infant loss and the impact those journeys have on families.

What they're saying:

"It's a great event every year. We've been out here. Beautiful weather today. So hopefully everybody can come out and join us," said Cory Boots, board member for March of Dimes. 

Boots had a similar experience to many of the families that March of Dimes fights for.

"It was a pretty terrifying event. Had no idea it could even happen, had no idea what to expect, and we just kind of took it day by day," Boots said. 

Because his daughter, Riley, was once a NICU baby, her journey inspired her to pursue a career in helping other families going through similar experiences. 

"It's super important to me and wanting to go into the NICU one day and be a P.A. is just one of my goals, and March of Dimes has had a huge impact on that dream," Riley said. 

Dig deeper:

Last year’s ambassador family, the Goel twins, who were born at just 25 weeks. 

"They were each less than two pounds, it was very scary for us. We were first-time parents. We did not know what was going on, and everything which could have gone wrong was going wrong, but ultimately, things came together and look at these girls now," said Sunayna Goel, mother of the twins.

"I couldn't thank enough. I don't think we could have done it without the community, which we found in the NICU and volunteer support. So we always like to give back to the families and normalize being in the NICU and be the support for the families like us," Goel added. 

The Vassells

And this year’s ambassadors, the Vassell's, know all about that journey too, as two of their children were born prematurely.

"Honestly, having gone through that once before, you know, with our first child, we kind of knew that the journey is," said Andrew Vassell, March of Dimes ambassador. 

"There was really no way to know when she was going to come home," Vassell said. "Having meetings with the care team to just kind of get a better idea of how is she doing and what things do you want to see before she's able to come. But, you know, every day just felt like an eternity, honestly." 

Guide for NICU parents

Big picture view:

This year, the Vassell’s are turning their NICU journey into a resource for others, creating a guide to help families navigate their fear, uncertainty and emotions that can come with having a baby in the NICU.

"This is going to walk you through the NICU experience from day one instead of learning from day five or day 30. We walk you through your arrival and your first days, and we present it in a way that's digestible for NICU parents that just had a young little baby," said Amber Vassell, wife of Andrew. 

By the numbers:

One in 10 babies in the United States are born prematurely, but with every step taken today, March of Dimes says it’s working to raise awareness and bridge the gap in care for mothers and babies before, during and after pregnancy.

"So, what March of Dimes means to me is just giving families a better opportunity to thrive in situations that can seem daunting and uncertain," Andrew said. "March of Dimes provides that security to families, those resources, the support to families. So, we couldn't do it without them."

You can find more information on March for Babies here.

TampaHealth Care