CHRISTUS Shreveport-Bossier Health System will celebrate its 40th annual Neonatal Intensive Care Unit (NICU) Reunion on Sunday, July 21.

The event, themed “Adventure Awaits,” will take over the West Wing Conference Room from 2-4 p.m. to recognize NICU graduates at CHRISTUS Highland Medical Center.

“More than anything it’s just a time to reconnect. When our babies are here, they really do become a part of our family and we become a part of their family,” said Christy Bailey, NICU clinical director with CHRISTUS Highland Medical Center. “Whether they are with us for a couple of weeks or months, we know what they look like and their struggle here and we know what they look like when they leave here. But we don’t always know how their adventure moves forward.”

The reunion is a special time for reconnecting with other NICU graduates, nurses, physicians and staff who helped families during their time in the unit.

“Some of our nurses have been here for 40 years,” Bailey said. “We have some graduates who have had babies and now those same nurses are taking care of their babies.”