Every name is special, but in the case of Eleanor Friesen, her middle name means just that much more. “Her middle name is Mira, which is short for ‘miracle,’” her dad Trevor explains.

Eleanor’s story began in 2022, when her parents received the news that they were having another child. This surprised Eleanor’s mom, Krista Sandercock, who was told years earlier she would be unable to get pregnant again due to a past medical procedure.

From the very beginning, Eleanor’s journey was anything but easy.

“It was considered a high-risk pregnancy,” Krista recalls. “They were concerned about Down syndrome and her overall growth. I was seeing specialists constantly, trying to understand what we might be facing.” Krista and Trevor say they were fortunate to have the guidance of Dr. Ernesto Figueiro, a maternal fetal medicine specialist at the Regina General Hospital, throughout her pregnancy.

Krista’s first major scare took place when she went into labour at 23 weeks. Doctors at the Rawlco Centre for Mother Baby Care at the Regina General Hospital managed to stop her labour, but it was a warning sign that Eleanor’s arrival may be sooner than expected. As a result, Krista was admitted to the hospital and remained there for eight weeks. At 27 weeks, her water broke a second time, but it stopped on its own at the hospital. At just over 31 weeks, Krista went back for a check-up before she planned to attend a wedding that same day, but life had other plans.

Eleanor’s heartbeat was not regular and it was revealed that Krista had an infection. Doctors prepared to deliver Eleanor within 24 hours, but her heartbeat dropped to dangerously low levels. Krista was rushed into surgery and she delivered her baby by C-section.

Because Eleanor was born nine weeks early, at four pounds and four ounces, she was admitted into our neonatal intensive care unit (NICU). While there, further investigation showed a softball-sized mass on her bum, caused by amniotic bands wrapped around her hip, leg and bum, cutting off her circulation. They feared the bands might sever her leg. Fortunately, once the bands were removed, the growth absorbed into her body.

Eleanor stayed in our NICU for 28 days. Krista and Trevor credit Eleanor’s round-the-clock care from her medical team in the NICU, as the reason she is here with them today.

“Now she’s happy and healthy, she jumps on the bed, and lives a life any little girl would want to live,” says Trevor. “She always has a smile or a giggle, and it’s infectious to be around her.”

Krista recalls donating to the Z99 Radiothon with Eleanor for the first time in 2024 and feeling like it wasn’t enough, given their experience at Regina’s NICU. “We know what it took to keep Eleanor alive,” she says. “And I remember thinking, ‘We can do more. We have to do more.’” They launched their own fundraiser called Local Bands for Tiny Hands in 2024, and to-date it has raised nearly $40,000 for our NICU.

“We need to nurture our small humans, and this is how we do that,” Krista says. “We have these hospitals because of amazing donors, so I thank every person who chooses to put their heart and their donations into building something better for our children.”

“It’s truly inspiring to see people like Krista and Trevor give back after their experience with our NICU,” says Dino Sophocleous, president and CEO, Hospitals of Regina Foundation. “Approximately 500 babies are cared for in our NICU every year, and go on to live better lives because of the generous giving spirit of our southern Saskatchewan community.”