our story
how we got here
In 2020, our son Milo was born with a congenital diaphragmatic hernia (CDH). What followed was an unimaginable journey for Milo, our family, and our relentless support system. Ultimately, the severity of his case was too much to overcome. But all it took was 18 days for Milo to redefine strength and change our lives forever.
As parents, the entire experience inspired a renewed sense of purpose: to live better, to do more, for Milo. We made a promise to ourselves to not just take advantage of opportunities to give back - but to create opportunities to do so. Thus, a nonprofit in his name became our vessel to make right on that promise.
We are the Kunkel Family: Sarah & Kevin, our kids Wesley (born 2019), Quinn (born 2022) & Cary (born 2025), and our son Milo who we lost in 2020 when he was just over two weeks old.
Going into what we thought was a standard 20-week ultrasound during Sarah's second pregnancy, we never could have anticipated the news we received - our little Milo was diagnosed with a congenital diaphragmatic hernia (CDH).
CDH occurs when a baby’s diaphragm (the muscle under the lungs that separates the chest from the abdomen) doesn’t form fully in utero. This allows abdominal organs such as the stomach, intestines, kidneys, etc. to migrate up into the chest cavity and crowd the lungs, preventing them from developing properly. It affects roughly 1 in every 2,500 babies but many have never heard of it.
Prior to that day, we had never heard of CDH either - so we were shocked, confused, scared, and uninformed. But as we learned more and more and started connecting with doctors and specialists, we buckled in for a journey we knew would be incredibly unique and a roller coaster of emotions.
Our little boy was born on July 10, 2020 and left quite a lasting impression on those that were lucky enough to meet him in person or follow along on his journey from a distance. Milo gave us 18 incredible days of unimaginable strength and love (you can read more about his life and journey on our blog), and ultimately we had to say goodbye with the heaviest of hearts on July 27th.
Early on during his time in the NICU, we knew we wanted to do something meaningful, impactful, and purposeful with everything he was teaching us. So that's how this website - which we initially started as a blog before Milo was born - evolved into something so special.
what we're doing
In 2026, Lurie Children's Hospital of Chicago (where Milo was born and cared for) established the For Milo Memorial Fund to provide financial support for families navigating the unthinkable. We are committed to funding this endeavor through 2028 and beyond.
No family should be faced with a financial challenge from essential costs of end-of-life care while grieving the loss of a child. It's become clear that the most impactful place to focus our work is on easing this burden for families.
We are deeply motivated to help others in any way we can, for Milo.
For the next child with a case like Milo's, or for the next family seeking answers like we were - the number of ways we can try to help each other is infinite. We are committed to raising awareness about CDH and infant loss to bring light to such important topics that we feel everyone could benefit from being better understood. We are committed to giving back in an attempt to return the favor to the inspiring organizations and people that were so quick to offer support to our family. We are committed to supporting others who may be struggling with their own experience by creating a platform that is open to dialogue and connections. In doing all of this, we are also very passionate about partnering with other mission focused organizations that operate with community in mind, and strive to make conscious decisions in our operation, no matter how big or small.