LILYS HOPE FOUNDATION

The Lily's Hope Foundation is a 501(c)(3) non-profit organization that supports babies, children, and their families with unexpected and urgent needs due to premature birth. We support our NICU families by providing them with essential items since they have been unable to prepare for their child's early arrival. Our Lily's Hope Families that are in the middle of this medical crisis are referred to us by hospital case workers, hospital staff, and word of mouth. We work with each individual family to answer their specific needs by way of our Packages of Hope.

Our Packages of Hope include items that can often be expensive and difficult to find. Each Package of Hope has an average value of $250.00, customized for each family’s need and could include gas gift cards, bottles, baby wipes, diapers, preemie clothes, blankets, paper products, hand detergents and hand sanitizer, games for the children and activity books.
Additionally, we look to fill a hospital's request for specific NICU equipment that will improve the outcomes for the premature babies such as Kangaroo Chairs, MamaRoo Chairs, NICU Hospital Grade Breast Pumps, and much more, that will benefit additional families beyond the Packages of Hope Program.

Officially in 2013, the Lily's Hope Foundation became a 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization. Our main goal is to help families that are in the NICU and to help make the transition home a little easier. We do this by providing families with essential items since they have been unable to prepare for their child's early arrival. Our Packages of Hope are Transition Home, Hospital, as well as Sibling Care Packages. Our families are referred to us by word of mouth, or by case managers, hospital staff, doctors and nurses from hospitals we support.

2014 was our first full fiscal year in action. We exceeded our original expectations and more than doubled our original budget projections. We assisted 44 families across 8 states, raising over $20,000 in monetary and non-monetary donations. In 2014 we partnered with Grand View Hospital and St. Luke's Hospital.

2015 was a banner year. We ended up helping 145 families with our Packages of Hope. We held many fundraisers including our 1st Annual Tournament of Hope Golf Outing, our 1st Annual Lily's Loop 5K Family Fun Run, Walk or Stroll in September, and our 8th Annual Lily's Loop at Chestnut Hill College in Philadelphia in October. Additionally we now have a billboard advertising for Lily's Hope in the Lehigh Valley, and we have officially trademarked "Lily's Hope." In 2015 we partnered with Lehigh Valley Hospital NICU.

2016 was just as exciting a year. We held our 1st Annual St. Patrick's Day Party for Preemie's Gala, our Annual Tournament of Hope, Lily's Loop 5K and our 9th Annual Lily's Loop at Chestnut Hill College We have instituted a new inventory system, and helped 253 families in a total of 30 states. In 2016 we partnered with Pocono Medial and St Mary Medical NICU's. We also added the words "aid" and "hope" to our tag line to show the different ways Lily's Hope is assisting our families.

2017 was an incredible year. We continued with our Gala, Golf Tournament, and Lily’s Loop events in the Lehigh Valley and at Chestnut Hill College. We officially supported 478 families in a total of 39 states. We added Doylestown Hospital and Lehigh Valley Hospital Muhlenberg to our growing list of hospital partners. In the beginning of the year, we unveiled “Hope the Hippo,” the official mascot for Lily’s Hope. We also started our Packing Party events in 2017, trademarked “Lily’s Loop,” and published our children’s book, Lily’s Hope, a Preemie’s Journey of Hope.

2018 was another banner year for Lily’s Hope. We expanded our St. Patrick’s Day Gala and moved it to Hotel Bethlehem. We also added CaroMont Medical in North Carolina. We also gave Lily’s Hope Foundation a home by opening an office on Cedar Crest Boulevard in Allentown, PA. We also assisted 575 families in 2018 and published a book to help the parents of preemie and their journey in the NICU titled, Preemie Parents’ Tips to Get you Thru the NICU.

Having helped over 3600 families and partnering with 17 hospitals, we rely on grant partnerships with organizations like yours and donations from fundraising events, including Lily’s Loop 5Ks – Lehigh Valley, CHC, and New Jersey, St. Patrick’s Day Gala, Golf Tournament of Hope, Restaurant matching events, and also from our Lily’s Hope Children’s Books-“ A Preemie’s Journey of Hope” and “Preemie Parents’ Tips to Get you Thru the NICU” proceeds.

This is an all-volunteer organization, with no salaries received.