Our son Austin Lee Robbins was born on September 20, 2015 at The Toledo Hospital in Toledo, Ohio. Twelve hours after being born, Austin became very fussy and had trouble breathing. Nurses evaluated him and immediately he was taken to the neonatal intensive care unit (NICU). After lots of testing, Austin was diagnosed with gram-negative bacterial sepsis and meningitis. The NICU doctors and nurses worked around the clock to do everything they could for Austin, but after three days of fighting with all his might, Austin passed away. In our brief time in the NICU we unfortunately experienced the helplessness that many parents there also felt. Having a sick child meant we could not do “normal” parenting things: hold, feed, bathe and take Austin home. However, the one thing we were able to do was read to Austin.

It is our goal for Austin’s legacy to continue on through the power of literature.We very much enjoyed reading to Austin during his 36 weeks in-utero and he made sure to let us know which books were his favorites with all of his punches and kicks during story time. This inspired us to create Austin’s Book Club (ABC). We want every parent to experience the joy of reading to their child because that is the most normal thing a parent can do at that time. Thanks to ABC, each of the 48 rooms in The Toledo Hospital NICU has books available for parents to read to their children. In addition, upon release from the hospital when children are well enough to go home, they will be able to take a book home with them. To continue our goal we need your help. Visit our “Donate” page to find out ways you can contribute. 

With great appreciation,

Brittany and Heather Robbins