MOOSIC, Pa. — The costumes worn by all the children at PNC Field are all different, but each of them has something in common.
"He was just born early. He was born at 33 weeks. He needed some respiratory support when he was born, but he, you know, graduated from that when he was in the NICU for about 18 days," said Andrea Eckersley, Clarks Summit.
"You know, when he was born, we did have HEMATOMA on his head, and he was like lighted down to Geisinger, Wyoming Valley. So I did have to spend the first couple of hours days away from him, which was really hard for me," said Kristen Swaha, NICU nurse.
Each of them has a connection to the NICU at Geisinger Wyoming Valley.
"So today, we're having our NICU family reunion. We did one about four years ago, and we just think it's really important to bring our families back together so that we can see our babies how they've grown, and our nurses get to see, you know, all the hard work that they put into giving them great medical care," said Melissa Williams, NICU operations manager.
And while this might have the disguise of a Halloween party and resource fair, it's a chance for 71 families who have spent time in the hospital's NICU since 2019 to catch up with staff, connect with other families, and more.
"We decided that this might be a really nice thing to come to to celebrate him and his triumphs but also to help us kind of put that traumatic experience behind us," said Kristen.
"The difference all of the nurses and doctors make and these babies' lives, and it just it means so much to us to see how they've grown," said Melissa.
"It means it means the world it's, you know, it's wonderful to see them grow up and be able to take care of them, and you know, I haven't one of my own, and watching him grow and develop has been just wonderful," said Andrea.
"They're so proud of how far their kids have come. They just want us to see what like we saw them at their worst. Now they're at their best, and they just want us to see them at their best," said Denise Perkowski, NICU team coordinator.