An Angel Child's Legacy

May 18, 2021


The birth of a family’s first grandchild is one of the most celebrated milestones in life. Few families are prepared for what Denise Bober and her daughter and son-in-law, Melissa and Michael Donlon and family, experienced.


On February 6, 2014, Melissa was rushed to St. Mary’s Medical Center. Her twins, already named Sutton and Kailey, were born 24 weeks into her pregnancy and weighed only 1.2 lbs and 1.1 lbs respectively. Kailey shined her presence on this earth for a mere 24 hours before God called her to come to heaven. Baby Sutton remained brave and strong, survived heart surgery and spent 111 days in the Neonatal Intensive Care Unit. Today, Sutton is a beautiful, happy, sassy, thriving 8-year-old daddy's girl who likes to give her mother a hard time.


During Sutton's long stay in the hospital, every day was an emotional rollercoaster for the family. Despite this, they found great comfort in the gentle care and nurturing provided by an incredible nursing staff, who were well trained, and had selfless hearts and large amounts of love to give.


"To this day, we are overwhelmed with gratitude and want to ensure that other families have the same nurturing, quality care when they need it most. Therefore, we created The Sutton Kailey Nursing Advancement Fund to honor our precious miracle Sutton and memorialize her angel sister, Kailey."

 — Denise Bober, Senior Vice President-Human Resources, The Breakers Palm Beach

Chair, Palm Health Foundation Board of Trustees


The Sutton Kailey Nursing Advancement Fund was established to support Palm Beach County’s nursing community through scholarships and programs that focus on skills and professional development to ensure quality nursing in Palm Beach County. Because of the gratitude Denise and her family have for the nurses who helped little Sutton grow and thrive, her fund will ensure that other families will have the same quality care. Honoring Denise’s granddaughters through philanthropy is a family tradition that will live on for years to come.

Support the Fund


Contact Carrie Browne, Director of Stewardship & Strategic Partnerships to establish your own named fund and explore the many ways to maximize your philanthropic giving through thoughtful gift planning.


CarrieB@phfpbc.org, 561-837-2281

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