--- title: "NICU Miracle Times Two: Micro-Preemies Celebrate 40th Birthdays | Sutter Health" description: "Jilyn Richmond and Loriellen Byron spent a couple of months together in the first neonatal intensive care unit at Sutter Medical Center." url: "https://www.sutterhealth.org/patient-stories/nicu-miracle-times-two-micro-preemies-celebrate-40th-birthdays-2023563929" --- 1. [Home](https://www.sutterhealth.org/) / 2. [Patient Stories](https://www.sutterhealth.org/patient-stories) / 3. NICU Miracle Times Two: Micro-Preemies Celebrate 40th Birthdays # NICU Miracle Times Two: Micro-Preemies Celebrate 40th Birthdays Sutter Medical Center, Sacramento * * * 2023 Jilyn Richmond was born in 1983 at 1 pound 6½ ounces on May 3, and Loriellen Byron was born at 1 pound 6 ounces just a month later on June 2, and they spent a couple of months together in the first neonatal intensive care unit at “Sacramento’s baby hospital” at Sutter Medical Center. According to studies, babies born under 1½ pounds (classified as “extremely low birth weight”) during those early years of neonatal care had less than a 30% survival rate. But, due to the passionate, compassionate care of Sacramento’s pioneering neonatologist Andrew Wertz, M.D., and perinatologist Hanns Haesslein, M.D., along with a team of dedicated nurses, both girls not only survived, but thrived. The two women recently found each other online, with both still living in the Sacramento area — Jilyn, a mother of two, and Loriellen, a high school special education instructional aide. For their combined 40th birthday celebration, they were reunited with Dr. Haesslein, Dr. Wertz and nurses, but also met each other for the first time in person. Their parents also reconnected with their care teams and shared recollections of their time in the groundbreaking NICU. They shared heartfelt thanks to the physicians and staff for saving their girls’ lives. In addition, since none of them have seen how NICUs have progressed in the past 40 years, they were treated to a tour of the Sutter Medical Center, Sacramento’s neonatal intensive care unit, which is the largest and most advanced NICU in Northern California. It's part of the Sutter Children’s Center, which is a comprehensive pediatric hospital at Sutter Medical Center, Sacramento. ## Discover similar stories Choose a service topic below to read more stories like this one. [Neonatal intensive care (NICU)](https://www.sutterhealth.org/patient-stories?verticalKey=patient_story&facets=%5B%7B%22i%22%3A%22c_services.name%22%2C%22v%22%3A%5B%22Neonatal+intensive+care+%28NICU%29%22%5D%7D%5D)[Pregnancy and childbirth](https://www.sutterhealth.org/patient-stories?verticalKey=patient_story&facets=%5B%7B%22i%22%3A%22c_services.name%22%2C%22v%22%3A%5B%22Pregnancy+and+childbirth%22%5D%7D%5D) ## Support at Every Step From conception to delivery, our pregnancy and childbirth providers put you first. 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Testimonials or statements made by any person(s) within this site are not intended to guarantee outcomes or substitute for medical advice._ ```json {"@context":"https://schema.org","@type":"MedicalOrganization","name":"Sutter Health","@id":"https://www.sutterhealth.org/#medicalorganization","url":"https://www.sutterhealth.org","logo":"https://www.sutterhealth.org/static/images/sutter-health-logo.svg","address":{"@type":"PostalAddress","streetAddress":"2200 River Plaza Drive","addressLocality":"Sacramento","addressRegion":"CA","postalCode":"95833","addressCountry":"US"},"areaServed":{"@type":"AdministrativeArea","name":"California"},"sameAs":["https://www.facebook.com/SutterHealth","https://www.instagram.com/sutterhealth/","https://x.com/SutterHealth","https://www.youtube.com/sutterhealth","https://www.linkedin.com/company/sutter-health","https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sutter_Health"]} ``` ```json {"@context":"https://schema.org","@type":"BreadcrumbList","@id":"https://www.sutterhealth.org/patient-stories/nicu-miracle-times-two-micro-preemies-celebrate-40th-birthdays-2023563929#breadcrumblist","itemListElement":[{"@type":"ListItem","position":1,"name":"Home","item":"https://www.sutterhealth.org/"},{"@type":"ListItem","position":2,"name":"Patient Stories","item":"https://www.sutterhealth.org/patient-stories"},{"@type":"ListItem","position":3,"name":"NICU Miracle Times Two: Micro-Preemies Celebrate 40th Birthdays"}]} ``` ```json {"@context":"https://schema.org","@type":"VideoObject","@id":"https://www.sutterhealth.org/patient-stories/nicu-miracle-times-two-micro-preemies-celebrate-40th-birthdays-2023563929#videoobject","name":"NICU Miracle Times Two: Micro-Preemies Celebrate 40th Birthdays","inLanguage":"en-US","thumbnailUrl":"https://cf-images.us-east-1.prod.boltdns.net/v1/static/817826402001/8a22e51b-b866-49d6-8e49-b9f72fe24dbe/01e71c93-38ef-4058-919a-7cb259080094/1280x720/match/image.jpg","uploadDate":"2023-08-31T20:14:01.951Z","embedUrl":"https://players.brightcove.net/817826402001/79bcaa57-54d7-453c-9f1f-8ab3ef7b15de/index.html?videoId=6336230765112","description":"In 1983, tiny babies weren’t expected to live. Two girls born a month apart at 1 lb. 6 oz. lived and thrived in Sutter Medical Center, Sacramento’s trailblazing NICU. They celebrated their 40th birthdays with their lifesaving medical team.","duration":"PT2M15S","transcript":"[MUSIC PLAYING]\n\nJILYN RICHMOND: We were there the same time, almost\nthe exact same weight, and we're 30 days apart.\nAnd I'm like, I've got to find this girl.\nLORIELLEN BYRON: We started talking in August,\nbut today was our first day meeting each other.\nHANNS HAESSLEIN: First of all, I want\nto say happy birthday to both of you.\nYour success, you know, really warms both Andy and my hearts\nbecause in those days, it was not a given.\nANDREW WERTZ: Every baby born at this gestation and size\nwas an adrenaline rush.\nIt was a work in progress, and I think\nwe were in the forefront of being able to get things right.\nSUBJECT 1: It's a wonderful thing\nthat these doctors were able to save my baby.\nSUBJECT 2: We were really blessed\nto be in the right place at the right time.\nJILYN RICHMOND: I am so grateful that Sutter\nwas around way back when.\nAnd it's been just neat to be able to be here\nwith these people to help save more lives.\n(SINGING) --to you.\nHappy birthday to you.\nJILYN RICHMOND: We got to enjoy our 40th birthday together,\nso it's like a reunion after 40 years.\nWe got to meet the doctors, and we\ngot to tour the NICU for the first time since like,\nwe were there.\nAnd we got to see all of the advancements for the babies\nto be able to come further.\nLORIELLEN BYRON: It was really neat to be able to be here\nand to meet Dr. Wertz and Dr. Haesslein in person.\nWe've heard stories of us in the NICU,\nbut to actually meet them for a different connection.\nCRAIG SWANSON: There's been radical transformation\nin every aspect of society, and medicine\nis no different from that.\nNow, you know, we expect these babies to survive.\nGUSTAVO SOSA: We developed better ventilators\nand learned a lot about their nutrition, which\nis incredibly important.\nSo all of these things together have\nhelped us take better care of these babies who\nwere born earlier.\nANDREW WERTZ: It is very humbling\nto see babies that were very, very fragile, very small, very\nearly that now are themselves mothers.\nThat, to me, is profoundly humbling.\n[MUSIC PLAYING]"} ``` ```json {"@context":"https://schema.org","@type":"Article","@id":"https://www.sutterhealth.org/patient-stories/nicu-miracle-times-two-micro-preemies-celebrate-40th-birthdays-2023563929#article","name":"NICU Miracle Times Two: Micro-Preemies Celebrate 40th Birthdays","headline":"NICU Miracle Times Two: Micro-Preemies Celebrate 40th Birthdays","abstract":"Jilyn Richmond and Loriellen Byron spent a couple of months together in the first neonatal intensive care unit at Sutter Medical Center.","description":"Jilyn Richmond and Loriellen Byron spent a couple of months together in the first neonatal intensive care unit at Sutter Medical Center.","keywords":["Neonatal intensive care (NICU)","Pregnancy and childbirth"],"datePublished":"2023-12-20","dateModified":"2026-01-22","url":"https://www.sutterhealth.org/patient-stories/nicu-miracle-times-two-micro-preemies-celebrate-40th-birthdays-2023563929","inLanguage":"en-US","isAccessibleForFree":true,"mainEntityOfPage":{"@type":"WebPage","@id":"https://www.sutterhealth.org/patient-stories/nicu-miracle-times-two-micro-preemies-celebrate-40th-birthdays-2023563929","breadcrumb":{"@id":"https://www.sutterhealth.org/patient-stories/nicu-miracle-times-two-micro-preemies-celebrate-40th-birthdays-2023563929#breadcrumblist"}},"author":{"@id":"https://www.sutterhealth.org/#medicalorganization"},"publisher":{"@id":"https://www.sutterhealth.org/#medicalorganization"},"image":{"@type":"ImageObject","url":"https://dyn.mktgcdn.com/p/L-74LD7jVin5Ki2c4viJNGf58MbunwSjUWjh2s3tqs0/fit=crop,gravity=auto,width=1200,height=630"},"video":{"@id":"https://www.sutterhealth.org/patient-stories/nicu-miracle-times-two-micro-preemies-celebrate-40th-birthdays-2023563929#videoobject"},"articleBody":"Jilyn Richmond was born in 1983 at 1 pound 6½ ounces on May 3, and Loriellen Byron was born at 1 pound 6 ounces just a month later on June 2, and they spent a couple of months together in the first neonatal intensive care unit at “Sacramento’s baby hospital” at Sutter Medical Center. According to studies, babies born under 1½ pounds (classified as “extremely low birth weight”) during those early years of neonatal care had less than a 30% survival rate. But, due to the passionate, compassionate care of Sacramento’s pioneering neonatologist Andrew Wertz, M.D., and perinatologist Hanns Haesslein, M.D., along with a team of dedicated nurses, both girls not only survived, but thrived. The two women recently found each other online, with both still living in the Sacramento area — Jilyn, a mother of two, and Loriellen, a high school special education instructional aide. For their combined 40th birthday celebration, they were reunited with Dr. Haesslein, Dr. Wertz and nurses, but also met each other for the first time in person. Their parents also reconnected with their care teams and shared recollections of their time in the groundbreaking NICU. They shared heartfelt thanks to the physicians and staff for saving their girls’ lives. In addition, since none of them have seen how NICUs have progressed in the past 40 years, they were treated to a tour of the Sutter Medical Center, Sacramento’s neonatal intensive care unit, which is the largest and most advanced NICU in Northern California. It's part of the Sutter Children’s Center, which is a comprehensive pediatric hospital at Sutter Medical Center, Sacramento."} ```