For the 2024 Novant Health Charlotte Marathon, in partnership with the Novant Health Foundation, you will see Meaningful Miles along the race route. Miles 2, 11, 12, 13, and 26 are all “Meaningful Miles” – a way for sponsors and supporters to cheer for the kids of Novant Health Hemby Children’s Hospital.
Hemby Children’s Hospital has a team of experts dedicated to providing the highest level of care that addresses each family’s needs. Our Meaningful Mile sponsors & supporters are helping us advance clinical care and research, while helping every kid have the chance to become the strongest in their class!
Meet our Meaningful Miles Patients
For this year’s marathon, we are honoring five patients of Hemby Children’s Hospital. Each of these patients represent all of the kids that the Hemby Children’s Hospital team supports each and every day. When you run the Novant Heath Charlotte Marathon events and for Team Hemby, you are running for Crosby, Jimmy, Luke, KamiSoko, and Sophie.
Crosby. Age 5. NICU Graduate.
Crosby was born prematurely at 29 weeks and 3 days. He spent three months in the Neonatal Intensive Care Unit (NICU) at Novant Health Hemby Children’s Hospital. His family was able to take him home three days before his due date. Crosby is now thriving, and he dreams of becoming a police officer.
Jimmy. Age 10. Diabetes Thriver.
In the fall of 2023, Jimmy was diagnosed with Type 1 Diabetes. For the next week, Hemby Children’s Hospital was not only home, but also an educational institution for Jimmy’s family. As an active athlete on football, basketball, and golf teams, he dreams of being an example to other kids with Type 1 Diabetes that they can achieve anything.
Luke. Age 6. Lymphoma Survivor.
Luke was diagnosed with T-cell Lymphoblastic Lymphoma one month after he turned 3 years old. Luke is now 5 years old and he is in remission. He loves Legos, basketball, golf, trains, and music. Luke’s family recalls that the Hemby Children’s Hospital team became their lifeline. Through their toughest days of chemotherapy and the long nights of uncertainty, Hemby was their sanctuary.
KamiSoko. Age 2. Leukemia Hero.
KamiSoko was diagnosed with leukemia in October of 2022 at the age of 6 months. KamiSoko is now 2 years old and he loves dance, music, and his brothers. KamiSoko’s mother said that she couldn’t have made it through without the love and support of the Hemby Children’s Hospital team.
Sophie. Age 11. Kidney Cancer Overcomer.
Right after turning 5 years old, Sophie and her family found out that she had a Wilms tumor – a rare form of kidney cancer. She went through surgery, chemotherapy, and related treatment over the course of 19 weeks. Sophie is now cancer-free, and she loves to dance, sing, play soccer, and play the guitar. Sophie wore her Wonder Woman outfit when she rang the bell, signifying the end of her cancer treatment in 2019.
Make your miles even more meaningful at this year’s Novant Health Charlotte Marathon. Run with Team Hemby and support kids like these, and all those being cared for at Novant Health Hemby Children’s Hospital.
Leave a Reply