NICU Reunion Photos

JOPLIN, Mo. – There were laughter and smiles, of course, as Freeman Neonatal Intensive Care Unit (NICU) children played with Hot Wheels, bubbles, and an adorable puppy during Sunday’s 2025 NICU Reunion.

But there were tears and hugs as well, as parents of NICU children reconnected with the Freeman nurses who cared for their precious newborns during some of the most traumatic and stressful times of their lives.

“As a first-time mom with a NICU baby, it’s nice to talk to different parents and families who went through the same thing I did, and to get advice and insights and just know that we’re not alone during this journey,” said Bailey Cannady.

Every day inside the NICU, Freeman nurses and physicians provide nonstop care from the moment a newborn takes his or her first breath to when the reunited family is finally able to leave the hospital for home. And while a NICU stay can be a very vulnerable time for families, Sunday’s reunion was the complete opposite – a happy, carnival-like atmosphere filled with music and the giggles and shrieks of children at play. 

“I think (the reunion) has a huge impact on the kids in the community, as they can spend time together and relate to each other as they were all in the NICU at one time,” said Izabella Medrano, Freeman Development Office’s Family Relations and Programs Coordinator.

Held at the Joplin Elks Lodge and hosted by the Children’s Miracle Network Hospitals, in which Freeman Health System is the only CMN Hospital within a 70-mile radius, fun activities ranged from a giant bounce house and rubber duck pond to facepainting and the opportunity to crawl inside a Joplin Police Department vehicle. The reunion occurs every two years.

Freeman NICU is a 24-bed unit that provides specialized care using state-of-the-art technology and years of experience treating premature and critically ill infants. Freeman Maternity Center, in which the NICU is located, is one of the busiest units of its kind operating in Missouri.

Children’s Miracle Network Hospitals, which helps furnish and maintain Freeman’s NICU, provides life-saving assistance to children from birth to 21 years of age in a 14-county area in Missouri, Kansas, and Oklahoma. All money raised stays local, helping children with medical needs and their families.