Zach McCarthy of Santa Clara is a busy young man these days. The 10-year-old is an “A” student, swims, plays soccer, golf, and baseball. This year, Zach also is serving as ambassador for the South Bay March of Dimes’ March for Babies that takes place on April 30 at Vasona Park in Los Gatos.
In December of 2000, Zach McCarthy was born 15 weeks too early. He weighed 2 pounds, 1 ounce, and was only 13 inches long. He had lung, eye and kidney problems and spent 136 days in the hospital, 52 of them on a ventilator.
Zach and his family are grateful to the March of Dimes for funding research which led to several of the treatments that he received in the neonatal intensive care unit (NICU) at California Pacific Medical Center in San Francisco.
“One in eight babies is born prematurely,” said Zach. “I am blessed because I survived and I have no apparent complications from my severe prematurity. Not all premature infants have a story with a happy ending.”
It is in celebration of Zach, as well as for thousands of premature babies born each year that the McCarthy family will walk in the upcoming March of Dimes March for Babies on Saturday, April 30 at Vasona Park in Los Gatos. Registration is at 8 a.m. and the 6.25-mile walk begins at 9 a.m. There will be music, refreshments, kids’ activities and more. Gilroy and Pacific Grove will host March for Babies events on May 15.
Funds raised by March for Babies help support prenatal wellness programs, research grants, NICU family support programs and advocacy efforts for stronger, healthier babies right here in Santa Clara. March for Babies is locally sponsored by Sutter Health, Flextronics and Citrix.
For more information about March for Babies, visit www.marchforbabies.org or call 408.490.2946.