The Grimsby Neonatal team would like to say a huge thank you after receiving a donation of a whopping £1,000 from three former patients and their friends and teammates at Clee Town Girls U15s.
Lacey Williams, 14, Evie Little, 15, and Ruby Beeson, 15, all spent time in the unit when they were born and wanted to give something back to the lifesaving teams who cared for them in those first crucial weeks.
Together they arranged a sponsored walk, which saw the girls, managers, parents and siblings of their teammates walking 50km in a single day!
The money will be used to help fund new equipment for the unit.
Proud mum Mel Williams – who also works for Northern Lincolnshire and Goole NHS Foundation Trust in our Patient Services team – said: “Lacey was born at 28 weeks, weighing a tiny 2lb 6oz and had to fight for her life.
“Without the incredible nurses, doctors, and midwives, she would not be here with us today so, as a family and a football team, we wanted to give something back to show just how much we appreciate what they did for us all.”
Evie’s mum, Bernadette Marshall, added: “Evie was born at 29 weeks, weighing 2lb 11oz, after my placenta ruptured, and she spent four months on the unit. We are forever grateful for the love and care Evie was given.”
Emma Beeson, Ruby’s mum, said: “Ruby was born six weeks early, weighing 5lb and 1oz. She spent a week on the neonatal ward, and all the staff were so helpful.
“They taught us how to care for Ruby, which allowed us to go home earlier than expected.”
The girls returned to the unit on Saturday to handover their donation to the team and look around the ward where they started life.
Mel added: “It brought back so many memories for us all and showed the girls some of the amazing work that’s done on the unit.
“Lacey was also introduced to some of the parents on the unit and is living proof that even when a baby is born so premature, they can grow up to be just like children who are born full term.
“We’d like to say a massive thank you to Senior Staff Nurse, Carol Ellis, who looked after our daughter nearly 15 years ago for making us all feel so welcome. We can’t wait to come back for the girls to see what their efforts have helped to fund.”
NICU Ward Manager, Sarah Taylor, said: “It’s always lovely to catch up with families we’ve looked after on the unit and see how well they’re doing.
“We’re really grateful to Lacey, Evie, Ruby, and the Clee Town Girls team for their donation, which will help us to help more families like theirs in the future.”
