2023 Pig Roast
Saturday August 5th
To Our Generous Donors:
We hope this letter finds you in good health and high spirits. As you may know, The Baby Skinner Foundation, a 501(c)(3), has been tirelessly working towards supporting families who are facing unimaginable challenges, and this year, we have encountered two families who need our collective help more than ever before.
To support this year’s families, we will host our annual Pig Roast Fundraiser on August 5, 2023 at the Andrew Toman Picnic Grove in North Riverside. Before we delve into this year’s families, we want to express our gratitude for your unwavering support and compassion over the past few years. Your contributions have allowed us to make a significant impact on the lives of those in need, and for that, we are eternally grateful.
The first family, the Tabor Family of Naperville, has a little boy who needs our help. Lincoln was born at 34 weeks. His heart rate plummeted upon delivery, and he entered this world needing chest compressions and ultimately needed to be intubated. The doctors informed his parents they were not sure if their baby would make it through the night. Lincoln was then baptized, and the love and prayers started to pour in.
Each day Lincoln fought harder and improved. He started showing signs of brain activity and began breathing on his own. After 47 long days in the NICU, Lincoln was able to go home and meet his big brother Myles.
Due to the lack of oxygen at birth, Lincoln was diagnosed with Cerebral Palsy (CP). He has been working hard multiple days a week both at home with physical and occupational therapists and two days a week at the Center for Independence in Countryside. Lincoln will continue to do therapy for the majority of his early life in hopes to learn to walk, talk, eat and live independently as best he can as he grows and develops.
These physical obstacles do little in slowing this little boy’s spirit. He has a permanent smile on his face for his favorite people and loves to cuddle. Lincoln takes every opportunity to show off his newfound skills learned through his relentless fight to not let CP define him. We believe that by lending them a helping hand, we can alleviate some of the Tabor Family’s worries and provide them with a glimmer of hope for an increasingly brighter future.
The second family, the McIntyre of Joliet is enduring a different kind of hardship. Just after Christmas 2021, Mary Alice, then 6 years old, developed unexplainable bruises on her body. Her pediatrician ordered blood work and all her blood cell counts were low - this began a long period of ruling things out, and further decline in Mary Alice’s health. Finally, after three months, two bone marrow biopsies, one skin biopsy, genetic testing, so many blood tests, and finally blood and platelet transfusions, Mary Alice was diagnosed with a rare blood disorder - Severe Aplastic Anemia. SAA is a bone marrow failure disorder - her bone marrow simply quit producing red blood cells, white blood cells, and platelets.
Mary Alice was lucky because, although the local children’s hospitals do not treat many patients with this rare disorder, there is a world-renowned Aplastic Anemia program just a few hours north - at the Children’s Hospital of Wisconsin. This distance also meant she would endure a long time away from home - four months total as she prepared for and recovered from a Bone Marrow Transplant from an unrelated donor in July of 2022. Although she came home in November, her immune system was still too weak to return to school or even visit with family or friends. She was finally able to join her 2nd grade classmates for the last 14 days of school in May 2023.
Recovery from Bone Marrow Transplant is at least 12-18 months, and there have been some bumps in the road to recovery, but today Mary Alice is doing great! Through it all, she has developed a beautiful attitude of bravery and resilience. She loves to run, sing, and play with her toy horses - and has gotten a few opportunities to be with real horses! Her best pal is a large stuffed horse named Smurfy. She looks forward to a summer with less worry and more fun! She hopes to swim, play with friends, and ride a horse! By coming together and offering our support, we can give Mary Alice and her family the strength and resources they need during these trying times.
These families embody the essence of resilience, love, and hope, and it is our responsibility to help lift them up and offer our support. We firmly believe that every child deserves a chance at a better life and that no family should face the burden of the unknown alone. With your support, we can make a profound difference in their lives and provide them with the means to overcome their current challenges.
We humbly request your generous contribution towards our fundraising efforts. Your donation, no matter how big or small, will directly impact the lives of these families, providing them with the essential support they need to move forward. Your kindness and compassion will offer them a glimmer of hope and remind them that they are not alone in their struggles.
To donate, please visit our website at www.babyskinnerfoundation.com. Additionally, if you know of any individuals or organizations who may be interested in joining our cause, we would be grateful if you could share this letter with them or provide us with their contact information. Together, we can create a ripple effect of kindness and compassion, reaching far beyond what we ever thought possible.
On behalf of the entire foundation and the families we support, we extend our heartfelt gratitude for your unwavering support. Your generosity has the power to transform lives and restore hope where it is needed the most. Thank you for being an integral part of this mission and for making a difference in the world.
With deepest gratitude,
The Sherman Families of Riverside & The Lyson Family of Berwyn
The Baby Skinner Foundation, Est 2011
KevinSherman1985@gmail.com Contact Kevin Sherman at 708-768-1390
We hope this letter finds you in good health and high spirits. As you may know, The Baby Skinner Foundation, a 501(c)(3), has been tirelessly working towards supporting families who are facing unimaginable challenges, and this year, we have encountered two families who need our collective help more than ever before.
To support this year’s families, we will host our annual Pig Roast Fundraiser on August 5, 2023 at the Andrew Toman Picnic Grove in North Riverside. Before we delve into this year’s families, we want to express our gratitude for your unwavering support and compassion over the past few years. Your contributions have allowed us to make a significant impact on the lives of those in need, and for that, we are eternally grateful.
The first family, the Tabor Family of Naperville, has a little boy who needs our help. Lincoln was born at 34 weeks. His heart rate plummeted upon delivery, and he entered this world needing chest compressions and ultimately needed to be intubated. The doctors informed his parents they were not sure if their baby would make it through the night. Lincoln was then baptized, and the love and prayers started to pour in.
Each day Lincoln fought harder and improved. He started showing signs of brain activity and began breathing on his own. After 47 long days in the NICU, Lincoln was able to go home and meet his big brother Myles.
Due to the lack of oxygen at birth, Lincoln was diagnosed with Cerebral Palsy (CP). He has been working hard multiple days a week both at home with physical and occupational therapists and two days a week at the Center for Independence in Countryside. Lincoln will continue to do therapy for the majority of his early life in hopes to learn to walk, talk, eat and live independently as best he can as he grows and develops.
These physical obstacles do little in slowing this little boy’s spirit. He has a permanent smile on his face for his favorite people and loves to cuddle. Lincoln takes every opportunity to show off his newfound skills learned through his relentless fight to not let CP define him. We believe that by lending them a helping hand, we can alleviate some of the Tabor Family’s worries and provide them with a glimmer of hope for an increasingly brighter future.
The second family, the McIntyre of Joliet is enduring a different kind of hardship. Just after Christmas 2021, Mary Alice, then 6 years old, developed unexplainable bruises on her body. Her pediatrician ordered blood work and all her blood cell counts were low - this began a long period of ruling things out, and further decline in Mary Alice’s health. Finally, after three months, two bone marrow biopsies, one skin biopsy, genetic testing, so many blood tests, and finally blood and platelet transfusions, Mary Alice was diagnosed with a rare blood disorder - Severe Aplastic Anemia. SAA is a bone marrow failure disorder - her bone marrow simply quit producing red blood cells, white blood cells, and platelets.
Mary Alice was lucky because, although the local children’s hospitals do not treat many patients with this rare disorder, there is a world-renowned Aplastic Anemia program just a few hours north - at the Children’s Hospital of Wisconsin. This distance also meant she would endure a long time away from home - four months total as she prepared for and recovered from a Bone Marrow Transplant from an unrelated donor in July of 2022. Although she came home in November, her immune system was still too weak to return to school or even visit with family or friends. She was finally able to join her 2nd grade classmates for the last 14 days of school in May 2023.
Recovery from Bone Marrow Transplant is at least 12-18 months, and there have been some bumps in the road to recovery, but today Mary Alice is doing great! Through it all, she has developed a beautiful attitude of bravery and resilience. She loves to run, sing, and play with her toy horses - and has gotten a few opportunities to be with real horses! Her best pal is a large stuffed horse named Smurfy. She looks forward to a summer with less worry and more fun! She hopes to swim, play with friends, and ride a horse! By coming together and offering our support, we can give Mary Alice and her family the strength and resources they need during these trying times.
These families embody the essence of resilience, love, and hope, and it is our responsibility to help lift them up and offer our support. We firmly believe that every child deserves a chance at a better life and that no family should face the burden of the unknown alone. With your support, we can make a profound difference in their lives and provide them with the means to overcome their current challenges.
We humbly request your generous contribution towards our fundraising efforts. Your donation, no matter how big or small, will directly impact the lives of these families, providing them with the essential support they need to move forward. Your kindness and compassion will offer them a glimmer of hope and remind them that they are not alone in their struggles.
To donate, please visit our website at www.babyskinnerfoundation.com. Additionally, if you know of any individuals or organizations who may be interested in joining our cause, we would be grateful if you could share this letter with them or provide us with their contact information. Together, we can create a ripple effect of kindness and compassion, reaching far beyond what we ever thought possible.
On behalf of the entire foundation and the families we support, we extend our heartfelt gratitude for your unwavering support. Your generosity has the power to transform lives and restore hope where it is needed the most. Thank you for being an integral part of this mission and for making a difference in the world.
With deepest gratitude,
The Sherman Families of Riverside & The Lyson Family of Berwyn
The Baby Skinner Foundation, Est 2011
KevinSherman1985@gmail.com Contact Kevin Sherman at 708-768-1390