Tune in to the Mo Show Live Tuesday, February 13th at 8:00 PM for a reflection on 5 years for Team Will and the March of Dimes. Martinson & Beason, PC attorney Morris Lilienthal, along with his wife Shannon, started Team Will in 2013 to celebrate the life of their son, William Jackson Lilienthal, and to raise awareness and money for The March of Dimes. The mission of the March of Dimes is to improve the health of babies by preventing birth defects, premature birth and infant mortality through the pillars of community, advocacy, research, education, and support (CARES).
Since its founding in 2013, Team Will has steadily grown. Last year, Team Will raised over $11,500 for the cause. Team Will was also recently featured in a WHNT News 19 story shedding light on infant mortality. Team Will appreciates your show of support through walking in the annual March for Babies walk and through financial contributions. To find out more about making a financial contribution, follow this link. This year’s walk will be Saturday, April 21, 2018, at 9:00 AM at Charger Park on the UAH campus.
Newborn babies in Alabama are at especially high risk. In fact, Alabama’s score on the premature birth report card was an F and there are over 500 infant deaths every year in our state. Alabama was one of only three states to receive an F, the other states being Mississippi and Louisiana. Shockingly, the annual yearly costs associated with premature birth in the US exceeds $26 billion dollars.
Morris and Shannon had been married for two years when they learned Shannon was pregnant. The pregnancy started normally, but doctors soon learned that Will was missing a kidney over the course of several ultrasounds. Even with a missing kidney, Morris and Shannon were told everything else looked normal.
Will was born on June 5, 2009, in Tuscaloosa and passed away a few days later on June 8th in Birmingham. After Will was born, Morris and Shannon were informed Will was having trouble breathing and would be transported to the RNICU (Regional Neonatal Intensive Care Unit) at UAB in Birmingham. Morris and Shannon are thankful they were able to hold Will before his passing. After his death, they learned he suffered from Vacterl association which is a cluster of abnormalities.
Almost exactly one year later, on June 9, 2010, Morris & Shannon’s son Wyatt Jameson Lilienthal was born. Wyatt, now 7, enjoys playing basketball, watching the UAH Chargers, playing in the pool, and school. He also is proud to be a part of Team Will in remembrance of his brother.
For more on Morris & Shannon’s story, read here. To watch this episode of the Mo Show Live, tune in to Facebook Live at www.TheMoShow.Live. To watch all prior episodes of the Mo Show Live check out our YouTube channel: http://bit.ly/MoShowYoutube
The Mo Show Live welcomes your engagement through comments and messages. To submit a question, email Morris at morris@martinsonandbeason.com.