Long Island Mom Leads a Team to Help Kids in Need

A mother would do almost anything for her child, and this will be put to the test next month when a Woodmere, NY, mom participates in the Miami Marathon to raise money for an organization that is close to her heart. 

Rachel Hersko, 36, is the mother of 11-year-old Jacob, who was born with necrotizing enterocolitis, a condition that causes intestinal tissue to die. At less than two weeks old, Jacob had most of his small intestine removed and spent most of his first year of life in the neonatal intensive care unit. Jacob's surgery was successful, but he remains dependent on a feeding tube today. 

For Rachel, the first few years of Jacob's life was a lot of learning. She and her family eventually became connected to Chai Lifeline, an international children's health organization that helps patients and families cope with the challenges of life-long and life-threatening illness. 

Participating in the Miami Marathon

Getting the phone call that her newborn had to have emergency surgery put Rachel, a nurse, into practical mode. As frightening as this news was to hear, she knew exactly what she had to do. 

“My nurse instinct kicked in. I wasn't scared, I wasn't sad. I told my husband, 'let's just go,'” says Rachel, who has two other children. “It didn't really hit me until I had to give him that kiss goodbye before going into the operating room. That's when I broke down.” 

Today, 11 years later, Jacob can have some food, most of his caloric intake comes from a special formula ingested through the feeding tube and bag that is connected to his stomach. His diagnosis has changed over the years, and he now lives with short bowel syndrome, a condition in which a person is not able to absorb enough nutrients from food because they don't have enough small intestine. 

According to Rachel, Chai Lifeline helped her family cope in so many ways. Whether it was sending volunteers to her house, giving Jacob a chance to attend Chai Lifeline's Camp Simcha or providing an after-school program for her children so she and her husband could spend more time with Jacob in the hospital, she's thankful for it all.