Miranda Chan

Why I'm Doing the Premmie Marathon Challenge

In 2020, at 34 weeks pregnant, I was in the middle of a regular workday at the hospital when something didn’t feel right. I’d had some severe pain and noticed less movement from my baby and couldn’t shake this sudden, overwhelming sense that something was wrong. I finished the ward round with the team and told a colleague, “I’m just going to pop out for a quick scan—I’ll be back in an hour.”

But I never came back. As it turns out, I was unexpectedly in labour. Four hours later, our son Remy was born.

He spent the next four weeks in the Special Care Nursery.

Those weeks were some of the most emotionally and physically draining of my life. Remy needed antibiotics, had difficulty feeding, and required round-the-clock support. Like so many parents of premature babies, I was caught completely off guard—not just by the early arrival, but by the complexity of what came after. I was exhausted, unprepared, and to make things harder, we were in the thick of the COVID-19 pandemic. Family couldn’t be with us. Support was limited. It was just us—navigating a stressful, isolating new reality.

And that reality didn’t end when we left the hospital.

Remy is now a bright, beautiful little boy, but like many children born prematurely, he’s had to face health and developmental challenges that stem from his early arrival. The ripple effects are real, and they don’t just impact the baby—they affect entire families for years to come.

That’s why the Premmie Marathon Challenge means so much to me. This November, Sean, Courtney and I are walking (and maybe running!) 42 kilometres to raise funds for premature babies—so they can have the best possible start to life, and so families like mine can access the care, resources, and support they desperately need when it matters most.

If you can, please consider donating. Every step I take is for the tiniest fighters and their families—who deserve a future as strong and hopeful as they are.

This November I’m taking on the Premmie Marathon Challenge

I’ll be clocking up my kms in the Premmie Marathon Challenge to raise funds for life-saving neonatal equipment that will give critically ill and premature babies a better chance of survival.

I'd love your support - if you can, please make a generous tax-deductible donation here.

Thank you for your support.
Your donation will help keep me motivated as I complete my challenge through November, knowing that each km I complete is helping save the lives of sick and premature babies.

Fancy joining me? You can sign up for the Premmie Marathon Challenge too! Simply choose your challenge distance and start clocking your kms for premmie babies.