Preemies hear their first Christmas stories, read by a kid who knows what it’s like.

The holidays can be a tough time for families with premature babies in hospitals, but Wednesday some of those babies and families got a dose of hope in the shape of a “NICU grad” sharing Christmas stories.

Madeleine Eubank spent 2 1/2 weeks in the Baptist Health Lexington’s neonatal intensive care unit after being born seven weeks early. Now, nine years later, she’s showing NICU patients and their parents that they can grow to be healthy and happy.

Since she was 2 years old, Madeleine has brought in books every Christmas as a donation. When she learned to read, she decided to take it a step forward and read “’Twas the Night Before Christmas” to some of the premature patients. Her younger brother, Bennett, has since joined in the tradition.

“We started doing it just as a way to kind of show the kids how to give back; especially around the holidays, the NICU can be a little bit lonely,” said Joel Eubank, Madeleine’s dad. “The nurses do a great job, they show a lot of compassion and love, but there’s still this weird feeling.”

The family hopes the gesture gives hope to NICU parents and “lets them know — happy and healthy is in your future,” Eubank said.

Dr. Lori Huff, a neonatologist, said Madeleine gives families a dose of the right medicine at the right time.

“It’s a blessing to watch someone like Madeleine come in and read, because it gives those parents hope that she was in the same situation that we are in; however, now here she is nine years later thriving and doing well,” Huff said. “I’m sure it’s very difficult having your baby in the hospital during the holidays, but seeing Madeleine kind of gives them hope that things will get better down the road.”

The NICU at Baptist Health is a relatively new 32-bed unit, director Holly Nieves said. The doctors and nurses take care of babies born about 28 weeks gestation and up. The new unit has separate rooms for each baby, allowing families to stay overnight.

“I get asked all the time, ‘How in the world can you work in a NICU? How scary and sad that must be,’ and I actually say the opposite,” Huff said. “Our babies are very resilient. They’re a lot tougher than people think they are.”

Parents and families of babies who have been cared for in the NICU unit often ask how they can “give back,” Nieves said. The nurses love to see former patients, like Madeleine, come back to volunteer and visit the babies, but donations can be made to the Baptist Health Foundation Lexington, she said.

Past donations have led to the purchases of specialty swings for babies, sleep sacks and rockers, Nieves said. Donations can be mailed to the Baptist Health Foundation Lexington at 1740 Nicholasville Road or called in to the office at 859-260-2569. To give directly to the NICU, donors must indicate the desired unit on their checks or when they speak to a representative, spokeswoman Brenda Kocher said.

This story was originally published December 20, 2017 at 9:11 PM with the headline "Preemies hear their first Christmas stories, read by a kid who knows what it’s like.."