Mark your calendars now ...
The 3rd Annual Pints For Preemies benefiting NICU Helping Hands and their Angel Gown Program will be on September 22, 2019 at Slab Sicilian Street Food as we honor the memory of sweet Leah Marie Joy Richard, a life lost far too soon.
We are honored to have this special evert sponsored by Bangor Savings Bank.
Music from the incredible local band, Elvirus Outsider.
Ice cream from the ever so talented Rococo Artisan Ice Cream (proceeds donated to NICU Helping Hands).
100% of the proceeds of #beer sales will be going directly to NICU Helping Hands and their Angel Gown Program all in honor of our little princess.
Breweries making this possible include:
Jack's Abby Craft Lagers
Mast Landing Brewing Company
Marsh Island Brewing
Springdale Beer
Foundation Brewing Company
SoMe Brewing Company
York Beach Beer Company
Connecticut Valley Brewing Company
Allagash Brewing Company
Batson River Brewing and Distilling
Lone Pine Brewing Company
For those who aren't able to join us for this special event,
all monetary donations will go directly to the Angel Gown Program.
NICU Helping Hands’ Angel Gown® Program began in 2013 because we recognized there was an overwhelming need for better support for families who lost a baby. Our Angel Gown® Program provides comfort for bereaved families through the gift of a beautiful custom made gown for final photos and for burial services. We provide support resources and mentoring programs for bereaved families as well. There is no greater gift that can be given to a grieving family than affirming the importance of the life of their child by offering the simple gift of our Angel Gown® Garments and supporting them emotionally and educationally afterwards.
It is a privilege for us to provide gowns free of charge to any hospital or family requesting our Angel Gown® Program garments.
Leah Marie Joy Richard
On March 25, 2017, Leah Marie Joy Richard was born 11 weeks early due to complete heart blockage and hydrops. Suzy, Leah's mother, had developed preeclampsia and Mirror Syndrome which had specialists racing against time to save the lives of both mother and child. Suzy's rare condition, Mirror Syndrome, left her with a dangerously low heart rate and she was close to heart failure. She could have died if they didn't deliver Leah right then. No one knew if Leah would make it to Boston Children's Hospital but Leah was determined to defy all odds and meet her family.
A team of about 30 at Boston Children's and Brigham & Women's Hospital provided life saving measures to stabilize Leah to make the run over to the CICU, have open heart surgery and a pacemaker put in.
Shane, Leah's father, spent hours pacing a hallway while her amazing care team fought for her life just as hard as she was fighting. No Mom or Dad should ever experience even the thought of losing their baby.
Her surgeons believed in her just as much as her loving family did and Leah's parents trusted the team at BCH with the most fragile life they had ever known.
From sun up to sun down, Leah's nurses and doctors provided her with so much more then tests and treatment. They gave her love and and gave the Richard family encouragement. They explained each beep and tube and test and medication as if she was their own. They provided the Richard family with all the knowledge they had on this rare disorder that ultimately took their daughter's life.
For 46 days, the outstanding medical providers gave little Leah life. Ultimately, her disease took over her tiny body and she couldn't fight any longer.
Leah Marie Joy Richard passed in the early morning of May 20, 2017 in the arms of her parents as they whispered in her ears for hours and showered her with kisses. She knew nothing but love - true, unfaltering love - for the 8 weeks she was here on this earth.
Through the advocacy efforts of her incredible parents, Leah's legacy continues to grow in the hearts of many around the world.
Testimonials
"During those two months at Boston Children's Hospital, we didn't get the chance to dress our princess or hold her till the last day. I never got to hear her cry because her lungs were too weak. It meant the world to us to be able to dress her in that beautiful gown that was donated by the NICU Helping Hands Angel Gown Program. I'll never forget that dress. It was fit for a princess.
NICU Helping Hands is an amazing organization dedicated to supporting families of NICU patients like my little princess, Leah. They help make the impossible possible. When families are facing their worst nightmares organizations like this step up to the plate helping with everything from finances to one on one support.
Their Angel Gown Program touched us tremendously. They donate a beautiful custom made gown (or suit) to bereaved families for the final burial services. For a father that only got to hold his daughter once it meant the world to dress my princess in something so #beautiful. All beer sales will be donated to this amazing organization."
- Shane Richard
The 5 Programs of NICU Helping Hands
Project NICU
NICU Helping Hands’ Project NICU is a hospital based program that expands the support services and level of education provided to parents and other family members who are affected by the hospitalization of a newborn in the NICU.
- Parent Support
- Parent Education
- Sibling Support
- From Hospital to Home
- Memory Archiving
- Bereavement
- Antepartum Support
- Transport Support
One-on-One Mentoring
Our One-on-One Mentoring Program pairs current NICU families with a mentor that provides support and guidance during and after the NICU experience. We work to match families requesting a mentor with a NICU graduate family who had a child born at the same gestational age and had a similar diagnosis. The goal is to provide NICU families with someone they can talk to and be encouraged by when things are difficult.
Family Assistance Program
The hospitalization of a baby in the NICU can leave a family financially unprepared. Current NICU family experiencing financial difficulty can apply for assistance through our gift card program. NICU Helping Hands’ gift card program provides assistance with grocery, restaurant, and gas expenses.
NICU Mom Connect
After days, weeks or perhaps months in the NICU with your fragile baby you are finally home. Perhaps you are wondering….what now?
Our monthly scheduled social outings provide the opportunity to CONNECT – to catch up with life, to share stories and to seek support from other moms who know exactly what you are going through now that you are home from the NICU.
Angel Gown® Program
Brides from around the world donate their precious wedding gowns to NICU Helping Hands. The wedding gowns are then distributed to our team of over 180 seamstresses throughout the United States to convert into perfectly made garments that a family will use to wrap their precious baby in for their final journey. Our garments are a gift of love from both a bride and a seamstress to honor not only a precious baby but their family as well.