March for Babies

 
 

Greater Twin Cities

Raised to date
$392,863
Our goal $667,686
 
Normandale Lake Park
60 E Broadway, Bloomington, MN 55425
Date: Saturday, April 25, 2015 8:00 AM
 
Date: April 25, 2015
Event time: 08:00 a.m.
Registration time: 7:00 a.m.
Location:
60 E Broadway, Bloomington, MN 55425
Normandale Lake Park

Important Update

Our March for Babies celebration is still on, but it looks a little different! We are rapidly preparing for a new, virtualized event that will be fun and engaging for everyone. This change in format aligns with the newly released CDC guidance for large events, to help ensure the safety and health of our participants. More details on our new format to come soon!

Join today
 

 
 
 
About March for Babies
Click here to download your FREE Metro Transit ride pass for bus and light rail to and from Mall of America on April 25! Passes will be valid for use between 6 a.m. and 4 p.m. We're getting ready to walk in March for Babies! Join walkers from all over southern Minnesota and the Greater Twin Cities area under one roof for one cause. Why let weather get in the way? It promises to be a fun day with people who share our passion for improving the health of babies.

March for Babies brings people together through events across the country and online while raising critical funds to tackle America's maternal and infant health crisis—one person, one community, and one step at a time. More than a yearly walk, March for Babies is a community. Families, friends, and co-workers can connect while raising critical funds for research, education, advocacy, and programs and services so moms and babies get the best possible start. Because together, each step forward leads to a healthy future for us all. March for Babies. Every step counts!

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By participating in this March of Dimes event, you assume all risks related to attendance and acknowledge and consent to the event terms, including but not limited to March of Dimes' liability waiver and health and safety guidelines, as set forth in detail here.

 

Event progress* $392,863 RAISED (As of Wednesday, Mar 18, 2026)

Raised: $392,863

 
Top fundraisers
 
1
Christin Gigstad
$9,615
2
Heidi Case
$7,700
3
Masked Masked
$3,346
4
Marina Hastings
$3,138
5
Masked Masked
$2,835
Top family teams
 
1
Go Lily
$13,048
2
Gigstad Miracles
$11,825
3
Ellery's Entourage
$9,755
4
Gertrude Guille: Tiny But Tough
$4,663
5
Dillon and Levi
$4,003
Company, school & org
 
1
AT&T - FINANCE - DUNLAP
$13,518
2
FAIRVIEW / UMN HEALTH
$12,895
3
EXPRESS SCRIPTS - MN
$10,936
4
FAIRVIEW M HEALTH PHARMACY SERVICES
$10,291
5
FAIRVIEW M HEALTH UMMC/UMMCH
$9,944
 
 
*The total amount displayed reflects the amount on the team or personal fundraising progress bar. If the progress bar is not displayed on the team or personal page, the team/person won't be displayed on the leaderboard. Leaderboard totals reflect cash and checks marked "received" on the online sponsor form as well as credit card and PayPal donations. Team captains can enter as cash and mark "received" any money raised through promotions, such as bake sales and casual days and any sponsorship money paid to March of Dimes, on their team's online form. Record all donations on your online sponsor form before you turn in cash and checks to March of Dimes!
 

Our ambassador

 

 

Meet Calian

Due to a dropping heart rate, Calian Brown was delivered via emergency C-section at 37 weeks gestation. He was instantly whisked away due to severe respiratory distress. It was soon discovered that he had suffered from a pulmonary hemorrhage and was immediately sent to the NICU at the University of Minnesota Amplatz Children’s Hospital (now named the University of Minnesota Masonic Children's Hospital). <P><P> As a result of the hemorrhage, Calian remained in critical condition and was diagnosed with pulmonary hypertension and hypoplasia. He also had an unknown lung disorder. He was medically sedated and paralyzed, intubated, on the oscillator, and received nitric-oxide and multiple blood transfusions. The doctors were baffled as to what caused his hemorrhage and for him to be so sick. They gave no hope for him to pull through. <P><P> He eventually endured pneumothoraxes and received three different surgeries of tubes in his lungs to try and correct them. A lung biopsy was also taken from him and he ended up hemorrhaging again during the procedure. After two weeks of intubation and respiratory failure, the doctors were left with one last resort to try and save his life. <P><P> At 13 days old, Calian had surgery to be put on ECMO, a heart and lung bypass machine, the highest possible form of life support. We needed a miracle, and a miracle we got. After a rollercoaster of 11 days on ECMO, the doctors told us for the first time at 21 days old that they finally had some hope for Calian to recover. <P><P> We were warned if Calian was to make it through he had a very long road to recovery and would probably end up on a vent for years to come. Nevertheless, with the proper assistance, he kept getting better and better. He was held for the very first time by his parents at 24 days old, extubated at 30 days old and to everyone’s surprise, came off all oxygen support at 2 months old. The doctors considered him one of the biggest turnarounds they had ever seen and a true miracle. <P><P> Today Calian still has abnormal lungs that remain undiagnosed, but he has taught us to never lose hope, to always stay positive, to never take the little things for granted, and that miracles really do happen. He also proved that with the right help, babies can fight through almost anything. <P><P> Treatments developed by March of Dimes funding helped save Calian’s life. March of Dimes funds research to find therapies to save premature babies including lung surfactant and nitric oxide to help babies who can’t breathe on their own. March of Dimes also currently funds a NICU Family Support program at the University of Minnesota Masonic Children's Hospital to provide comfort and care to families with a premature baby in newborn intensive care.

Rewards

 
$200
- March for Babies T-shirt
$350
- $15 Macy's or Kmart Gift Card and T-shirt
$500
- $25 Macy's or Kmart Gift Card and T-shirt
$1,000
- $50 Gift Card/Circle of Champions T-shirt/Button
$2,500
- $125 Gift Card/Circle of Champions T-shirt/Button
$5,000
- $250 Gift Card/Circle of Champions T-shirt/Button
$10,000
- $500 Gift Card/Circle of Champions T-shirt/Button
$20,000
- $600 Gift Card/Circle of Champions T-shirt/Button
 
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