2016 Shining Star Award will be presented by
Zack Pfeffer of the Philadelphia Union to
Anna and Kate Quirus
John and Jeannette were surprised when their first daughter Jillian was born 12 weeks early. They were young, healthy and had excellent health care. As they found out, prematurity can and does affect everyone.
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Despite the fact that they were considered high risk, they decided to have a second child and soon found out that they were expecting twins, which made the pregnancy even riskier. However, with help from the March of Dimes, they researched means of reducing the risk and worked closely with their doctor to take the necessary steps to do so.
Thankfully Anna and Kate were not born until the 30-week mark — still early but better because of research and education by the March of Dimes. Today the twins are 9 years old, in fourth grade and share an interest in soccer, which was especially evident when they had the chance to spend time with Union midfielder Zack Pfeffer.