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Stella and Francesca were born at Birmingham Women's Hospital, 11.5 weeks early. They were both cared for in the Neonatal Unit. 

Francesca slowly moved forward and was discharged seven weeks later, three weeks prior to their due date. 

For Stella, unfortunately, a more tortuous path lay ahead. She seemed to take one small step forward, only to be hit by setback after setback. The endless moves from ventilator to bi-pap to c-pap to optiflow and back again; being told that she needed steroids with the associated risks inherent in those; the shifting steroid doses and varying levels of oxygen left us all exhausted and full of worry but we never lost hope that our little soldier would come out at the other end. 

Her care shifted to the Children's Hospital once she outgrew the Neonatal Unit and seven months later, when she was ten months old, she finally came home. She's still on oxygen and tube feeds but she's home where she belongs with her sister. 

We will never be able to thank Birmingham Women's Hospital enough for saving our girls but we can do something to help them help other babies. Two years ago, when Stella finally arrived home, we organised Stella's Soiree which raised £16,500 towards new heated cots for the neonatal unit. Last year, we repeated the event and raised an amazing £18,500 for an ECG machine. This year, we're doing it for one final time (Sparkling Soiree) and hope to beat last year's total.  

Sparkling Soiree will take place on Friday 5th March at Bournville College. We would love you to attend - tickets are priced at £30 and are still available - to book contact The Fundraising Office on 0121 623 6874 or email : eileen.rock@bwhct.nhs.uk. Alternatively, please consider donating to this worthwhile cause on this website.

Donating through JustGiving is simple, fast and totally secure. Your details are safe with JustGiving – they’ll never sell them on or send unwanted emails. Once you donate, they’ll send your money directly to the charity. So it’s the most efficient way to donate – saving time and cutting costs for the charity. Please note - donations through this site will not buy you tickets for the above event. Thank you.