Giese was one of 9 others out of hundreds of online of submissions in Indiana whose story merited special consideration for March of Dimes Mom of the Year 2009 awarded Friday November 20th at a special dinner and reception at the Indianapolis Marriott Downtown hotel at 6pm. 

“March of Dimes is proud to have Ms. Giese as our Mom of the Year 2009,” says Tanya Hand, State Director of the Indiana Chapter of the March of Dimes. “This Mom of the Year event is held to honor and recognize the contributions all Moms make every day to the health of our community and our families and, of particular importance for the March of Dimes, the health and lives of babies.” Says Hand, “the March of Dimes and Moms are newborns’ greatest champions.  The March of Dimes wants what every Mom wants, a healthy birth for their newborn as well as for all babies.”

Hundreds of nominations for Mom of the Year 2009 were submitted online by family and friends from across Indiana.  The March of Dimes put those submissions before a panel of volunteers who used three criteria for selecting the finalists:
1. Perseverance- Overcoming obstacles.
2. Management-Juggling multiple priorities successfully
3. Leadership – Providing a great example for her family and others to follow.
These three criteria are also the guiding principles for those on the Mom of the Year Selection Committee, a group of successful women from the leadership of corporate, civic and public organizations whose decision to name Ms. Giese the Mom of the Year 2009 was announced at the event.

When reading Cara Giese’s story these criteria are especially evident.  In words taken directly from her online nomination:

“At 18 weeks of pregnancy Cara’s amniotic sac ruptured causing her to be on bed rest for an extended period of time.  This was an extremely difficult time for Cara as she is a type A personality, and she wanted horribly to be up and running with Jillian, and lifting and hugging and squeezing on her as she otherwise would have been doing.  Her love however was so great for her unborn child that she put her own wants and needs aside.  As the pregnancy became more and more difficult including hospitalizations all Cara could concern herself was making sure Jillian was taken care of at home.  With Cara’s guidance I made sure Jillian didn’t miss a beat. 

Nearly nine weeks after Cara’s amniotic sac ruptured God blessed us again December 24, 2008 with the arrival of Jillian’s little sister and our second child, Samantha.  Without the love and care Cara showed during that time prior to Samantha’s birth she would never have been born.  Regardless of the care and love Cara provided Sam with prior to her birth she was born 13 weeks early and had an uphill battle in front of her. 

Sadly, Sam lost that battle only 92 days into her short life.  Cara gave Samantha enough love in 92 days to last 92 years.

Samantha was born 60 miles from our home and unfortunately was never able to leave the hospital.  So for 92 days Cara did the impossible.  She was two places at once, the hospital with Sam, and at home with Jillian.  She of course was not two places at once but her heart always was.  She did her best to always be there for both our children during an amazingly difficult time and I know no one who could have done it better.  Cara with my help rearranged our lives such that either she or I was at the hospital every day and night of Sam’s life.  This alone was not impressive.  The impressive part was that she made sure one of us was also at home with Jillian for the entirety of Sam’s life.  We weren’t able to accomplish this every night but probably 9 out of 10.  It was extremely important to Cara that Jillian not be forgotten and for her life to be as normal as possible during this time.  I think she accomplished that with the help of wonderful family and friends.  Without that help the shear logistics would have been impossible.  Along that vain Cara made sure we had dinner as a family nearly every night.  This is the only time during the day one of us was not at the hospital with Sam.

On the last day of Samantha’s life we were presented with the most difficult decision of any parent’s life.  The abbreviated version was we could remove Sam from life support or we could continue to keep her on it though she was suffering and the chances of her recovering were minimal at best.  Some people might ask how you could take your child off life support.  The answer for Cara, as her mother, was she loved her far too much to make her suffer simply so we could keep her around.  Though it would have crushed Cara she and I made the decision to remove Sam from support thus ending her life.  Fortunately or unfortunately we ended up not needing to do that.  Later that day it was apparent Samantha was gone prior to being removed from support.  Sam passed away in her mother’s arms. 

In the following days Cara made sure that Samantha had the most wonderful funeral service.  In the weeks and months since then Cara has continued to be an amazing mother to Jillian despite her grief and amaze me every step of the way. “

The finalists for Mom of the Year 2009 included:
Thomasina Alexander, Camby, IN 
Brandi Boswell, Speedway, IN
Jenny Burkett, Evansville, IN
Victoria Flournoy, Indianapolis, IN
Linda Carol Fry, Indianapolis, IN
Jenna Gensic, South Bend, IN
Cara Giese, Lafayette, IN
Christine Rasche, Fishers, IN
Cora Jane Swanner, Gas City, IN

“The March of Dimes is privileged to hold-up these 9 Moms and proud to have the opportunity to draw attention to the work of all Moms and their central importance to the success of our mission to give every baby a healthy start,” says Hand.  November is Prematurity Awareness Month and Prematurity Awareness Day is November 17th.  To find out more information about the Mom of the Year Event and how you can help the March of Dimes visit marchofdimes.com/Indiana or call 800-244-9255.

The March of Dimes is the leading nonprofit organization for pregnancy and baby health.  With chapters nationwide and its premier event, March for Babies, the March of Dimes works to improve the health of babies.  For the latest resources and information, visit marchofdimes.com/Indiana or nacersano.org.