Walk for babies in planning stages

The March of Dimes recently held its official kickoff in Rockingham County, and it’s turning out to be bigger and better than last year, according to Community Director Deborah Patterson.

This year’s goal is to raise $45,000, and Patterson said organizers are well on their way.

“I think we had a bigger turnout this year, and I’m really excited about where this is heading,” she said. “We had close to 200 walkers last year, but I think we’re going to surpass that this year.”

This year’s ambassador is Gage Lovelace, son of John and Ashlie Lovelace of Reidsville. The Lovelaces said they already have around 55 people signed up to walk on their team this year, and they’ve raised about $3,000 toward prevention of premature births.

Gage was born at 36 weeks to Ashlie, who was suffering from preeclampsia during her pregnancy. She said doctors had to perform an emergency Caesarean section that left Gage with some breathing problems. He had to be transported straight into the Neonatal Intensive Care Unit at the Women’s Hospital of Greensboro.

“He was born 5 pounds, 6 ounces, but he got down to 4 pounds at one time,” she said. “Gage had to have a feeding tube, and I didn’t get to see him until a day after he was born.”

Ashlie said he was expected to spend 30 days in the hospital, but he was released after only 15 days.

“He’s doing great now at 18 months – he’s a big guy,” she said. “He is low in his percentile, but completely normal and growing on schedule.”

Ashlie said since they’ve been named ambassadors for this year’s March of Dimes, they’ve been busying trying to spread the word and get people involved. She and her husband have gotten around eight local businesses to sponsor their team, including Greer Recycling and Lovelace Siding and Window Co. in Reidsville.

The Lovelaces are still accepting donations and team members for the walk. She said they are hoping to get most of their donations in by March 14 so team T-shirts can be ordered for the event.

The March of Dimes walk was created to raise funds for prevention of infant mortality and premature births. Money raised from the events have gone toward enhanced newborn screening techniques, surfactant therapy for newborns and research to prevent many other complications from premature birth.

To join the Lovelaces team, visit www.marchforbabies.org and search for “Team Gage.” This year’s walk will be held April 30 at Osborne Baptist Church in Eden, located at 326 E. Stadium Drive. Registration begins at 9 a.m. and the event starts at 10.