HonorHealth's newborn ICU gives babies a chance at life as local business helps with fundraiser
SCOTTSDALE, Ariz. - Nicholas Bubeck's life started ahead of schedule.
Born at 32 weeks, weighing less than five pounds and having spent a week in the Newborn Intensive Care Unit at HonorHealth, he says being a NICU baby makes him feel special.
He is now 11 years old.
"I was born small and now I'm perfectly healthy. They made sure I could play sports. I just got done with my baseball practice for example, I like to play instruments, I like to sing," says Nicholas.
Hes was the first child in the family, making for a scary start to parenthood for his mother and father.
"I think the NICU was hard for them but they also knew the doctors and nurses were taking care of me and they also knew they were really kind to me," he said.
Every September, Nicholas makes an effort to give back to the NICU nurses and doctors who helped make his life what it is today.
That includes Dr. Matthew Abrams, who says being a neonatal doctor allows him to provide a service that means the world to families.
"People want to be treated well. They want to feel that you love their kids and that can have an impact for life. I mean, there’s people that sometimes bring us treats every year that their baby was in the ICU for a few hours," said Dr. Matthew Abrams.
On Sunday, Sweet Provisions is taking the idea of treats for the NICU to the next level with an all-day fundraiser for the unit.
"Every dollar that we sell is going to go to the NICU and we're so proud as a community member to see them doing such great work, moving the community forward, helping others and we're just a very small part of that and we're just honored to be here," said founder Christopher Collins.\
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Sunday is also conveniently National Ice Cream Cone Day.
Dr. Abrams says the money will help make NICU stays a little easier for families.
"You know there's a lot of things that make the wheels churn in the newborn ICU that you start adding up the little things, and a lot of it's for the families too, providing snacks for the families, trying to make their stay in the hospital as comfortable as it can be," he said.
A stay that lasted seven days for Nicholas and his family but left a lifelong impression.
"To the nurses I wanna say thank you for helping all those babies including me to help stay alive, healthy, and thank you for being an amazing person," Nicholas added.