On Sunday, October 13, 2019, I had the pleasure of attending the 19^thannual Miracle Walk in honor of the Saint Barnabas Medical Center Neonatal Intensive Care Unit (NICU). I was invited by NJMOM and this was my first time walking and supporting this beautiful cause.Miracle Walk is an annual walk-a-thon to raise financial support for the Neonatal Intensive Care Unit at Saint Barnabas Medical Center, an RWJBarnabas Health facility. It was created by a family in gratitude for the care their daughter received during a three month stay in the Saint Barnabas Medical Center NICU.  A team of dedicated parents have joined together to organize and participate in this annual walk-a-thon to raise financial support for the NICU. 
Over the years, Miracle Walk has raised more than $6 million to purchase advanced medical technology for the NICU. Friends and families may sponsor a walker, make a donation or walk any distance that is comfortable for them.

It was a beautiful sunny Sunday and I attended with my husband and my kids (Gabriel 2.5 years old and Raphael 5 months old). The event kicked off with lots of family friendly activities and entertainment. I recommend registering before you go and getting there on time so you can enjoy everything the event has to offer.

As we walked in torwards the event we appreciated a beautiful scenic park view that has a stroller- friendly path. Everything was very organized in different tents. They had one tent just for registering and if you pre- registered someone was helping people out of the lines. Right after that you could just walk to the tee shirt tent and get the size you need.
There was a DJ, face painters, balloon artists, characters and a whole tent for crafts.
Coffee lovers were covered as well. They had two tents for food and refreshment. One was just for coffee and the other one had a lot of snacks such as bananas, oranges, cereals, pretzels, and yummy bagels.

It started at 9am so everyone could hang out, enjoy some light breakfast, take the kids for different activities and then get ready for the walk.
Around 10:15 they had a few speeches from former NICU patients with their families, as well as nurses, physicians and doctors.
After that everyone started to get ready to make the walk. The park is stroller-friendly and allows everyone in the family to get involved and make a difference.

I had the pleasure to walk along with my family and a couple of friends that went there to support this year’s Miracle Walk.
The event runs from 9 until 12pm. After we walked we hung out for another hour letting the kids play and enjoy all the available activities. The balloons tent was certainly a hit! My boy was very excited and the balloon artists were so much fun.


I’m so glad I had the opportunity to be part of this wonderful event and help and support the Miracle Walk. It’s such a perfect family day fun experience and even if you can not make it to the event that are other ways to support it.

The Miracle Walk teams and supporters have enabled Saint Barnabas Medical Center to purchase state-of-the-art medical equipment to care for the region’s smallest and most fragile babies. Miracle Walk continues to impact the care received at Saint Barnabas Medical Center and every year this event grows more and continues to provide the very best neonatal care in New Jersey.