As part of our 20th anniversary “Homecoming” campaign, we were thrilled to welcome back Rachel and Arthur. The couple reflects on their journey from navigating life-saving care at CHOP to the joyful progress their daughter, Vivian, is making today. Their story shows how Fred’s Footsteps support gave their family stability when they needed it most – and how that foundation created a ripple effect, empowering them to open their hearts and home to other medically-complex children.

As we celebrated our 20th anniversary, we welcomed back families we’ve supported over the years to reflect on the journeys that changed their lives forever. One of those stories is Kyle’s: after a devastating skateboard accident in 2015 left him with a severe traumatic brain injury, Fred’s Footsteps helped hold the Pszenny family together by covering essential bills and assisting with home modifications so they could focus entirely on his recovery. Today, Kyle’s transformation from wheelchair-bound to skydiving stands as a powerful testament to resilience, family strength, and the life-changing impact of compassion, community, and steady support.

As Fred’s Footsteps celebrated 20 years of impact, we brought together families from across our program history to reflect on the moments that changed their lives – and the futures they’ve built since. From hospital hallways and financial uncertainty to healing, growth, and new beginnings, these stories reveal the lasting effect of meaningful support during a family’s darkest season. It’s is a reminder that when families are given stability and compassion in crisis, the impact can carry forward for generations.

The White Family of Cumberland County, NJ, faced a serious medical crisis when their third child, Kelsey, was diagnosed in-utero with a nearly fatal condition. After her birth, she faced a long hospital stay and recovery, finally going home after two months. As the family was settling into their routine at home, little Kelsey developed a serious respiratory illness that landed her back in the hospital for 50 days. This latest medical battle created a huge financial burden on the family. The holidays can be especially challenging for families struggling to make ends meet due to the financial strain of their child’s medical needs. Fred’s Footsteps alleviated some of the pressure so the Whites could catch their breath and savor the season.

Meet the Marino Family and their ten-year-old daughter, Milana, of Turnersville, New Jersey. Milana lives with a rare, progressive, genetic disorder called Niemann-Pick Type C. She is ventilator-dependent, and completely reliant on others for all her care needs. There is no treatment or cure for her horrific disease.

Milana’s parents, Tara and Matt, and her baby brother, Vincent, have shifted their lives and careers to dedicate themselves to her love and care. But the price has been steep. Facing many challenges including lengthy hospital stays and commutes with unpaid leave and lost wages, gas, tolls, medical bills, around-the-clock home nursing, an adapted van, specialized wheelchair, hospital bed, and other medical equipment needs, it’s a wonder how the family was ever expected to stay afloat.

Through Fred’s Footsteps and our dedicated home renovation fund, Pat’s Projects, the Marino Family received $10,000 toward the renovation of their home to safely care for Milana on their first floor. This included building a bedroom and accessible bathroom to ensure the best quality of life for Milana – and her loving family. See the life-changing before and after: from carrying a dripping wet child down two flights of stairs all while praying not to slip, to safely wheeling her right from her roll-in shower to her bedroom. THIS is the type of dignity and safety we strive to provide.

Seven-year-old Kellen of Newark, Delaware, lives with a rare disease. Characterized by muscle weakness and overall fatigue, nemaline rod congenital myopathy makes daily life a struggle. When his mother, Corrine, left her job as a nurse to become Kellen’s full-time caretaker, it created a financial strain on their single-parent household. The emotional toll is also a challenge as Kellen undergoes interventions and treatments for everything from speech and nutrition to mobility and breathing.

As Kellen got older, bigger, and wanted more independence, shower-time became a struggle for the family. It consisted of Kellen resisting, Corrine getting drenched, and a dangerous, slippery situation for all. That’s when Corrine’s Social Worker connected her to Fred’s Footsteps.

Through our Pat's Projects program, Fred’s Footsteps contributed $10,000 towards the family’s bathroom renovation. With a more accessible shower, Kellen is able to shower safely and more independently. The shower has brought so much relief to this aspect of their lives!

Born way too early, at just 23-weeks gestation, Robbi Marie spent the first 361 days of her life in the hospital, most in the neo-natal intensive care unit (NICU) receiving the specialized care she needed to survive and grow.

Her adoring parents, Rob and Tonya, were bedside with their daughter through the most critical stages, and as time went on, they took alternating leave from their jobs so one of them would always be by her side.

As the months of hospitalization continued, their reduced pay from being on leave, as well as the cost of gas, tolls, and parking for their daily hospital commute was significantly impacting their finances. Add in the mounting medical bills, and soon Tonya and Rob found themselves falling behind on their mortgage.

Fred’s Footsteps stepped in to pay several past months of their mortgage to relieve this additional stress. By getting them up caught up on past due payments and late fees, they had one less worry knowing they could securely remain in their home.

When it was time for Robbi to finally be discharged, Rob and Tonya wanted to ensure their home was as safe as possible for Robbi’s fragile lung condition. Thanks to Fred’s Footsteps’ support, the family was now also able to replace their old carpeting with better flooring that would improve their home’s air quality, and Robbi’s chances of success.

As she grows, Robbi remains medically complex, requiring oxygen and medication to support her breathing, G-Tube feedings for nutrition, in-home nursing, early intervention therapies, and around-the-clock care. With the support of the Fred’s Footsteps community and others, along with their faith in God and love for one another, this special family is meeting all the challenges of caring for, and delighting in, their miracle daughter, Robbi Marie.

Grace was born prematurely at just 24 weeks gestation and has faced an uphill battle to survive. Multiple surgeries and medical complexity have taken a toll on the whole family. Her Mom, Maryann, traveled daily to visit Grace- causing gas and travel expenses to add to their financial hardship. They also have a two-year-old son at home, recently diagnosed with autism and diabetes, and the family struggled to balance getting the necessary treatments for him, and spending time with Grace in the NICU.

Grace's father, Chris, was previously employed as a director at a skilled nursing facility, but shortly after Grace's birth, stepped down from his leadership position (and salary) to help care for his children.

After 223 days in the neonatal ICU, Grace was finally discharged. This young family is at last together under one roof, with the support of the Fred's Footsteps community who helped pay their rent and keep their home.

Jaelin Brown was a typical teenager getting ready to graduate high school. She became quite ill and was admitted to CHOP with abdominal pain, vomiting, and abnormal labs. Her condition quickly worsened, and she was moved to the PICU - diagnosed with septic shock, liver failure, and cardiovascular and neurologic dysfunction. Jaelin's illness continued to progress very rapidly, and she became gravely ill.

Jaelin received a liver transplant. However, a complication of her acute illness was damage to her extremities (feet and hands) due to poor blood circulation. As a result, she underwent bilateral trans-tibial amputations of her feet a month later.

Fred’s Footsteps supported the Brown family during this time with three months of mortgage and cell phone payments to keep things going while parents were bedside with Jaelin. Therapy continues as Jaelin is learning to walk with her prosthesis and re-gain strength lost during this ordeal.

Alberto and Rachael Montes were excited to be preparing for their first child. Rachael is a surgical/trauma ICU nurse at Temple University Hospital and was working through the thick of COVID-19. Alberto had been with his company for over 20 years, but the company closed in November 2020 due to the pandemic. Then, in December, when Rachael was 17 weeks pregnant, her water broke and she was immediately put on bedrest to save the pregnancy. She had been saving all of her paid time off to use during her maternity leave, but quickly ate through that reserve. She was unable to work, and the family’s finances were taking a major hit.

Then, on February 16, 2021, at just 26-weeks-gestation, Mia was born, weighing 1 lb 14 oz. Her prognosis wasn’t great. In fact, her parents were told to prepare for her passing. In addition to a serious heart surgery, Mia suffered from hypoplastic lungs and a life-threatening bowel perforation requiring another surgery. She was critically ill. If she survived, she was expected to be in the hospital for upwards of six months.

Alberto had started a new job, but was unable to take PTO or FMLA to be by Mia’s side. With the drastic cut in salary, and the added medical and travel costs, the family was suffering. Their hospital social worker referred them to Fred’s Footsteps, and we were able to pay three months of their mortgage and utility payments so that they could catch their breath.

Baby Mia, now home and doing well, is a warrior and has made a remarkable recovery.

Vivian was born at just 29-weeks with an extremely rare chromosomal abnormality. She lived in the hospital for 18 months in Indiana, and then her doctors expressed that they had run out of options to treat her. Desperate to find solutions, Vivian's parents moved the family to Philadelphia, and Vivian was transferred to CHOP to continue treatment. At CHOP, Vivian was admitted several times and underwent several major surgical procedures, but her parents started to see significant changes and felt for the first time as if they were seeing progress.

Vivian's parents are both veterans and prior to her birth, they were employed full-time. Once resettling in Philadelphia, they both got jobs and were juggling Vivian's 24-hour care; but the move and increased living expenses put an enormous strain on the family. Fred's Footsteps was honored to support Vivian and her parents by providing rent and utility payments for four months so that they could focus on adjusting to their new normal.

Baby Max was born way too early – at just 24 weeks gestation - and was hospitalized for a staggering 223 days. After going through their unpaid FMLA time, Max’s mom (a social worker) and dad (an accountant) had to return to work to keep their family afloat. They spent their non-working hours commuting back and forth to be by Max’s bedside at the hospital.

Max was finally able to go home in the fall, but relief was short-lived. After just a few weeks, Max needed to return to CHOP for another surgery related to his extreme prematurity. He is home again now – hopefully for good – but his family knows his intensive medical needs will be ongoing. They are doing well at home, and his mom has been able to take another medical leave until January as they settle into their “new normal”. Fred's Footsteps helped Max’s family bridge the gap from some of the hardship of their lost wages over this past year. Staying on their feet with their mortgage payments will give Max’s loving parents the breathing room that they need to focus on caring for their sweet baby at home without additional financial worry.