How a Local Non-Profit Raised $1 Million

The Michael Gerard Puharic Memorial Fund, Inc. (www.michaelsfeat.org), is a New Jersey 501 (c) 3 non-profit dedicated to giving comfort and easing the burden for parents carrying and caring for seriously ill newborns. The Fund is named in loving memory of baby Michael Gerard Puharic, born July 29, 2000 to Adam and Dana Puharic. They were informed early on in the pregnancy that Michael would face grave health problems because of a chromosome disorder known as trisomy 13. This condition presents many developmental challenges throughout the life of the child. The Puharics elected to be the best parents they could for as long as their child was with them. On August 1, 2000, after battling for 83 hours, Michael passed away peacefully at home with his parents at his side. At Michael’s funeral, the Puharics announced their intention to start a fund to assist other families raising an ill newborn. This initial fundraising goal turned into Michael’s Feat and has now helped hundreds of families throughout Monmouth & Ocean County over the past 10 years. We'll discuss with Adam and Dana how they built this non-profit organization, which ended its 10th year by hitting the $ 1 million dollar mark in donations, never forgetting the Mission they set out for the Fund. Michael’s Feat’s mission is to provide comfort and support for families facing a health crisis with their newborns. We'll discuss how a group of volunteers continue to help Michael's Feat purchase major health equipment for the Neonatal Intensive Care units of Monmouth Medical Center and Jersey Shore Medical Center; assist families of seriously ill newborns in need and continue to keep the memory of their baby Michael alive.