On May 25th, 2009, my life changed forever when my daughter, Annabelle Rose Ribuffo, was born too soon at only 27 weeks due to a very complicated pregnancy. She weighed in at only 2 pounds 3 ounces. As a result of her prematurity, she faced many obstacles while in the NICU. The experience was a complete roller coaster. She was so fragile and was hanging on for dear life. You really don’t think it can happen to you, but I soon realized that no one is immune. We found out that Annabelle had a grade IV brain bleed when she was only a few days old, which can happen to premature babies and can be completely devastating. No parent wants to hear that news. What many people do not truly realize is how weak and immature their little bodies are.  Annabelle was flown to Miami Children’s Hospital via Lifeflight at a month old. Over the course of her life, she had a heart surgery (PDA ligation), 4 brain surgeries due to complications from her brain bleed, and an eye surgery. She was a truly a fighter, but in the end she could hold on no longer and passed away on November 1, 2009. She was only 5 months old. 

            This experience taught me so much, and I saw so many babies suffer due to their prematurity. But, I also saw many babies go home. About a year ago, I saw a TV ad for Gators March for Babies, and I knew I had to participate. I thought that I should be proactive and become a voice for prematurity awareness. Right now, there are babies fighting for their lives at various NICU’s throughout the country and even right here in Gainesville. We need to come together and do all that we can to make sure that all babies are born healthy. I am so glad that I got involved with Gators March for Babies, and my family team raised over $1,400 dollars last year.

- Cecelia Ribuffo
  UF Graduate Student