In June of 2017, Phillip and Ciara were excited to add to their family with their second child. However, on February 15th their world changed. Ciara was going about the families nightly routines when she started to bleed. Phillip and Ciara rushed to the hospital. Once they were in the hospital they ran tests and everything seemed fine with Ciara and Baby Arabella. Due to the bleeding, they kept Ciara for observation. In the middle of the night, she started to bleed heavily and was then transferred to a Pittsburgh hospital. Doctors diagnosed her with partial placenta abruption. Ciara was kept in the hospital for a few days and then released. In March of 2017 she was placed on bedrest for the remainder of her pregnancy which was 10 weeks. It was a difficult time for Ciara and Phillip who had a 2 year old at home who didn’t understand what was going on. On March 29, 2017 Ciara gave birth to Arabella at 31 weeks weighing 3 pounds and was 15 inches long. Spending time in the Neonatal Intensive Care Unit (NICU) can be frightening and overwhelming for parents, especially when they must go home each night and leave their precious babies behind. During their time at the hospital, Arabella received surfactant therapy to help her lungs develop. Due to her early birth, she had breathing challenges and was sent home on a pulse ox, oxygen and an apnea machine. After 48 days in the NICU, Arabella was finally able to come home. Today, she is a happy and healthy 2 year-old! Like Arabella, about 380,000 babies are born too soon in the United States each year. Preterm birth is the leading cause of newborn death, and babies who survive an early birth may face long-term health challenges, including breathing problems, cerebral palsy, and intellectual disabilities. Even babies born just a few weeks early have higher rates of hospitalization and illness than full-term infants. Premature babies require specialized care to help them thrive. March of Dimes funded the research on surfactant therapy and nitric oxide, two applications that help underdeveloped lungs of preterm babies just like Arabella to breathe easier. Since the development of these two therapies, two-thirds of the babies who would have died from respiratory distress syndrome now survive their early birth. Ciara and Phillip know the significant role that March of Dimes research played in helping their daughter grow and thrive. As the 2020 Beaver County March for Babies Ambassador Family, they will share their story and help raise awareness in support of healthier moms and stronger babies.