Aubrey Koudelka, the inspiration for To the Moon and Back.
A Chance Encounter
When Brittani Weber brought her
son Kason to the McLane Children’s
NICU to help distribute comfort items
with To the Moon and Back, she never
imagined meeting up again with the
physician who cared for her son as a
micro-preemie infant.
“Have you ever felt like you have
seen God’s work right before your
eyes?” Brittani says. “That’s the best
way I can describe seeing Dr. Raju
hug my son in the exact place he
saved Kason’s precious life three
years ago.
I was showing Kason where his
isolette was located in the NICU, when
I heard someone say our names. I
turned around and it was Dr. Raju! He
knelt down with tears in his eyes and
gave Kason the biggest hug I have
ever seen. Really, it’s hard to put into
words the feeling that we all had at
that moment. It was incredible.”
McLANE CHILDREN’S: COMMUNITY PARTNER PROFILE
Giving back helps heal in the wake of personal
tragedy and grief.
Aubrey Koudelka’s family knew
she would have developmental issues
after she suffered a fetal-maternal
hemorrhage at birth and spent the first
three months of her life in the Neonatal
Intensive Care Unit (NICU).
“When Aubrey’s parents got to the
NICU, one of the nurses had her dressed
in a little hat and blanket,” says Kelly Nix,
Aubrey’s great-aunt and founder of To
the Moon and Back. “It gave them a lot
of comfort, just knowing that someone
else realized that she was a viable little
human being.”
When Aubrey passed away suddenly
at eight months old, Kelly and her family
were struck with grief. “Her older brother,
who was six at the time, was worried that
no one would remember her,” Kelly says.
“To the Moon and Back was my way of
turning my grief into something positive
and healthy, and making sure that Aubrey
would be remembered.”
Inspired by the comfort that a simple
hat and blanket brought to her family,
Kelly and a team of volunteers began
crafting hand-made comfort items, such
as hats, blankets, and laundry bags
to deliver to NICUs throughout Texas,
including McLane Children’s. They even
deliver to NICUs in Canada and England.
The group of volunteers also work
with nurses to determine what the babies
and their families need in the NICU.
Moon-shaped pillows help prop IV lines,
position babies, and show comparative
growth over time. Since parents often
can’t hold their premature babies, the
group also creates “bonding hearts”
which are exchanged between the
parents and baby to share their scents.
“The babies are so tiny and
vulnerable, and the parents are scared
and stressed during a time that should
be joyful. We just want to make the
parents feel as normal as possible
while their baby is in the NICU,” says
Donna Wright, who also experienced
the healing power of giving back after
her grandson was stillborn. “It gave me
the will to get out of bed some days
and keep going. I realized that while
my grandson didn’t make it, there
were babies that did, and families that
needed this love and support.”
To date, the group has donated
more than 5,000 items to the McLane
Children’s NICU. “It’s very healing for our
whole family,” Kelly says, “just knowing
that Aubrey’s little life is impacting other
children and giving other families some
peace and comfort.”
Click here to read more about
Kason’s story.
Dr. Venkata Raju greets Kason, whom he treated as a
micro-preemie.
Donna Wright, Kelly Nix, and Marlene Poehlmann
deliver To the Moon and Back items to families in
the McLane Children’s NICU.
More information:
• Learn how you can support the
NICU at McLane Children’s
• Fundraise for Baylor Scott & White
• Learn more about To the Moon
and Back
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THE COMPASS / BAYLOR SCOTT & WHITE CENTRAL TEXAS FOUNDATION NEWS / WINTER 2019