Background Statement
Love For Lily was founded in memory of Lily Cahoon, a beautiful baby girl born at 24 weeks gestation. Lily spent three and a half months in the NICU, and then her parents Sahra and Ted brought her home on hospice. During that time, Sahra was left wondering why there was so little support for the families of these tiny babies. Love for Lily began on Mother's Day 2012 to bring community and resources to families walking a similar path.
2017: We launched "Lasting Love" a post-NICU program designed especially for NICU Moms and their babies for one year after discharge that serves mothers from all Denver Metro Area hospitals.
2018: We launched Love, Camden & Friends, our bereavement support program providing emotional support for families grieving the loss of their child. Offering folders of hope and a weighted stuffy to bring a little comfort to empty arms.
2020: In the midst of the COVID-19 pandemic, we launched virtual support services, expanding our reach across the nation and allowing quarantined families to access support.
2021: We expanded access to our grant program by launching Ryder's Love in partnership with Ryder's Fund of Colorado. Ryder's Love offers a hand-up to families served outside of Colorado who spend four or more weeks in the NICU.
2022: we developed and hosted a Grief & Loss Training, serving 69 medical professionals.
2023: We welcomed Saint Joseph Hospital - Denver into our NICU family.
2024: We added a new virtual support group for NICU dads in collaboration with Caring for yoU and Baby (CUB) Clinic at the University of Denver. We also launched The Love for Lily Center for Coaching & Education, serving 93 medical professionals as well as beta-testing our coach training curriculum.