We received this beautiful thank you letter the other day, and the parents were kind enough to want to share it with other families. To Abel’s family: we wish you all the best and thank you for your beautiful words which mean so much to the staff, and which will also resonate with many other NICU families.
To all NICU doctors, nurses, technicians and all staff in general:
Last year, on Christmas Day, when we first arrived in Toronto, Canada from Cuba, we were expecting a baby and dreaming about starting a new life. At that point, we never imagined how complicated the next few months would be for us.
My wife, who was 24 weeks pregnant at the time, suddenly received news of several severe complications in her pregnancy. First, a kidney infection, followed by high blood pressure, and finally her entire body became extremely swollen. She started several antibiotic treatments right away, but finally, preeclampsia resulted in our baby being born prematurely with only 26 weeks gestation at Sunnybrook Hospital. Our tiny baby was born on January 19th at 12:10 pm, weighing 713 grams and was very sick.
As newcomers to Canada, arriving just days before the premature birth of our son, although we did not have a chance to establish our home here, the NICU became our home, and everyone made us feel very welcome here. We dreamed about a new life in Canada and we have seen this miracle come true. That miracle has a name today, Abel Angel, our fighter-baby-boy.
He has had his story of struggles: intubations, CPAP, ducts, liver issues, distended tummy and the list goes on. But now some of them are only memories. The marvelous phrase, which greets you in the NICU entrance: “A person’s a person no matter how small” was truly a reflection of Abel during his initial stay here. When we first saw him, we thought, oh my God, he is so small! He looked so fragile and so sick. But all the love here helped him grow. And as the Bible said in 1 John 4:18: “There is no fear in love. But perfect love drives out all fear.” And we saw first-hand how love transformed Abel from a tiny preemie to a stable baby being released today weighing 7lbs.
Our faith in God and our trust in the fabulous staff at the NICU helped us through this rough time. Although you would probably say you have done nothing but your duty, we wanted you to know that you have also given us life, hopes and dreams back.
We want to thank every single person who works at the NICU. You all mean a lot to us. We will never forget all you have done making and turning our little miracle into a beautiful little person.
Although many names come to mind, it would be unjust to mention them here, as we do not want to miss a single person who helped make our experience at the NICU so wonderful. That’s why we just say: Thank you NICU for these last 4 intense months, during which we saw the power and love of God manifest itself through your hands.
Hoari Chiong and Grethel Cuevas
Parents of Abel Angel Chiong Cuevas
Beautiful thank you letter! Beautiful family!