LEGISLATIVE RESOLUTION commending March of Dimes upon the occasion of
hosting its annual March for Babies event to be held April 24, 2016

WHEREAS, The March of Dimes Foundation is a pioneer in improving the
health of infants and women of childbearing age by preventing birth
defects, premature birth and infant mortality; and
WHEREAS, In 1938, inspired by his own personal struggle with polio,
President Franklin D. Roosevelt founded the National Foundation for
Infantile Paralysis, better known as March of Dimes; and
WHEREAS, March of Dimes funded vital research for the development of
vaccines that effectively ended the polio epidemic in the United States;
and
WHEREAS, After accomplishing the organization's initial goal, March of
Dimes turned its efforts to preventing birth defects and infant mortal-
ity; and
WHEREAS, March of Dimes has worked tirelessly to support genetic
research, promote newborn screening, and educate medical professionals
and the public on best practices for healthy pregnancies to ensure all
babies can have the best start to life; and
WHEREAS, In 2003, March of Dimes initiated a Prematurity Campaign to
raise awareness, research causes and prevention, and expand access to
care to reduce the nation's preterm birth rate and enable all mothers to
have healthy, full-term pregnancies; and
WHEREAS, March of Dimes' annual March for Babies fundraiser was first
established in 1970 and has raised over $2 billion to support critical
research and programs for the prevention of birth defects, prematurity,
and infant mortality; and
WHEREAS, Each year, March for Babies events are held in hundreds of
communities with the support of more than 20,000 company teams, fami-
lies, and national sponsors; and
WHEREAS, The New York City March for Babies will be held on Sunday,
April 24, 2016, and is expected to draw thousands of participants and
raise $2.3 million in proceeds for March of Dimes; and
WHEREAS, This year's event will be led by March for Babies ambassador
Mariana, who was born 15 weeks prematurely and faced many life-threaten-
ing illnesses and open-heart surgery over a five-month stay in the
Neonatal Infant Care Unit (NICU); and
WHEREAS, Today, Mariana is thriving and her strength and resilience
have inspired her family, including her parents Damaris Hernandez and
Joe Gilbert and her four-month-old baby brother, to join the March for
Babies to help future families and honor the memory of those who joined
Mariana in the NICU and never made it home; and
WHEREAS, For the 10th straight year, the New York City March for
Babies will be led by Celebrity Chairman Eli Manning, who has dedicated
himself to supporting the mission of March of Dimes and improving the
health and well-being of infants and children; and
WHEREAS, It is the sense of this Legislative Body to recognize the
organizers and participants of the March for Babies and the entire March
of Dimes organization for their invaluable contributions to children and
families in New York State and across the nation; now, therefore, be it
RESOLVED, That this Legislative Body pause in its deliberations to
commend March of Dimes upon the occasion of hosting its annual March for
Babies event to be held Sunday, April 24, 2016; and be it further
RESOLVED, That a copy of this Resolution, suitably engrossed, be tran-
smitted to March of Dimes.