Superhero Project gives families with babies in NICU a "lifeline" to always have eyes on them
The Superhero Project is connecting families with babies in Neonatal Intensive Care Units with AngelEye cameras, so when the families can't be in the NICU, they can always have eyes on their babies.
One Bucks County family knows how important NICU cameras can be, and they're now helping to raise awareness for the nonprofit, which began as a local initiative and has since grown into a national organization touching lives across the country.
John is the baby Lauren Walsh is grateful to have.
"John was so critical when he was born that they didn't even lift him over the sheet for me to see him," Walson said. "So, I saw him just being wheeled out of the operating room."
John was born prematurely at 32 weeks and weighed only 1 pound, 15 ounces.
"It was terrifying," Walsh said.
Johh spent 61 days in the NICU at Pennsylvania Hospital.
"You're always thinking about him," father Robert Walsh said. "You're always wondering how he's doing, how he's progressing."
John's parents weren't able to be with him all the time in the NICU, but they were able to watch him.
"I was able to see John on that camera before I actually met him in person," Lauren Walsh said. "That was so amazing for me because not being able to see my baby for 24 hours. It's probably the hardest thing I've ever done."
It's called AngelEye CameraSystem, a technology that allows parents to see their babies remotely through their cellphones or laptops.
"It was extremely comforting because there was not a time that I didn't have John right here on my phone that I could see him," Robert Walsh said.
The baby is 9 months old now and at home with the family who is grateful to have been able to stay connected when he was hospitalized.
"I had that camera on all the time," Lauren Walsh said. "There was no time that my phone was not on that camera, and it was a lifeline for me."
The Superhero Project, the main charity of the Philadelphia Building Trades, provides the lifeline. In tribute to the project, John's siblings dress up like superheroes.
"You would never know that he's a baby that has faced as many challenges as he had," Lauren Walsh said. "He is the happiest. I mean, you will never find a baby that laughs more than John."
Lauren Walsh's grandfather was one of the founders of the All Star Labor Classic, which started 38 years ago.
The All-Star Labor Classic, which supports the nonprofit, is coming up in April.
