‘Let’s Make Miracles’ Radiothon 2020: The Kachman Family

Imagine having to give birth to a baby girl...and then leaving her at the hospital for 79 days.

Shannon and Josh Kachman are the parents of Brendan, who was a toddler when his sister came into the world. Baby Ava was born at less than 2 lbs and could fit in the palm of your hand. She was in the NICU for 79 days, and a lot of her problems were respiratory.

Shannon was sent to Hurley for a c-section and gave birth at 27 weeks. "It was beyond scary. It's almost like everything kind of, aligned. The anesthesiologist held my hand and said, 'today is MY birthday, so I know that Ava is going to be okay.'"

"Everybody is really fantastic, I still talk to half of them. They're my family. I don't think anyone really understands what you're going through; those nurses do everything."

I couldn't see her for 24 hours. Then one of her nurses asked me if I wanted to hold her; she was intubated and they had to tape her to my shirt. I held her for like three hours," said Shannon.

"The nurses were fantastic. On Mother's Day, at the foot of her bed, there was a footprint at the end of her bed that said 'happy mothers day.'"

What they do every day at Hurley is so impressive," said Josh,

"It's trust. You have to leave your children with people you hardly know. And by the end, you feel like you've known them your entire life," said Shannon. "There are nights that I would call every two hours and all the nurses will willing to talk to me, even if nothing had changed."

Brendan likes to play monster trucks with his little sister and says that he's the "big brother of the year." We agree!

Can YOU be a miracle maker for families like the Kachmans? Call 877-719-KIDS (5437) or text HURLEY to 51555.