About Coral
On January 21st, 2019, the day after earning their Open Water Scuba Diver Certification, Yhadird and Julie found out they were pregnant! They joked that they should name the baby 'Coral or something' since the little bean dove with them throughout their training. Sadly, just three months later, their pregnancy ended at just before 19 weeks due to a rare pregnancy complication called PPROM (Preterm Premature Rupture of Membranes), in laymen's terms, when a woman's water breaks early in pregnancy.
Currently, there is no reliable prevention method, treatment or cure for PPROM. The existing protocol is to urge termination to avoid complications for the mother. Julie went against this advice and together, Coral and her momma made it 17 days with no measurable fluid before Coral passed away due to a PPROM complication.
In the wake of their loss, Julie and Yhadird have chosen to speak out about their PPROM diagnosis and loss to raise awareness and funds for the many exciting research and education initiatives working to help babies like Coral survive and thrive!
In grief, it is often suggested that to set goals that help you look toward the future. Julie and Yhadird's first goal was to train for and run in the 2019 Baltimore Running Festival in Coral's memory, using this platform to draw attention to this rare pregnancy complication and raise funds for PPROM research and family support. They partnered with The PPROM Foundation, a 501(c)(3) based in Colorado, to help achieve this goal. After a successful first year, the Making Waves for Coral team is setting a new goal of raising $5,000 for PPROM research and family support initiatives in 2020! Check out our website, http://www.coralstrong.org for the most up-to-date information on our progress and new initiatives!
