A reunion 22 years in the making

Jose De La O Arechiga was born 16 weeks early and weighed barely 2 pounds. His parents called him their “miracle baby.” He spent the first three months of life in the Children’s Wisconsin NICU and while his parents worked two jobs, Carrie Burns was both his primary nurse and his primary caretaker. That was 22 years ago.

Today, Jose is a certified nursing assistant at Children’s Wisconsin and is going to school to be a nurse practitioner. And Carrie is still caring for the smallest and most fragile babies in our NICU. For the first time since he was 3 months old, Carrie and Jose reunited.

“I just wanted to thank her for saving my life.”

Evan Solochek Writer Children's Wisconsin

Children's Wisconsin is one of the region's top destinations for the care of newborns and fetuses with complex medical and surgical needs, before or after birth. The Fetal Concerns Center offers comprehensive care coordination for families and work in partnership with the providers who offer a variety of fetal interventions. We have Wisconsin's largest level IV NICU and care for the region's high-risk newborns. Our comprehensive program is nationally recognized for our interdisciplinary approach, physician expertise and consistently high measures in safety, quality and outcomes.