Camille Plante, CEO & Founder for The Wee Warriors Project, was first introduced to Aprendamos Family of Services in 2014. As the mom of a premature infant, her journey and story are unique. At just 23 weeks into her pregnancy, Camille gave birth to her son, Ryder. Born weighing a mere 640 grams—which translates to approximately 1.4 pounds—the extreme premature nature of his birth led to Camille and her family being transferred to Las Palmas Hospital in El Paso, TX, where Ryder spent 6 months in the NICU.
Although Ryder was 6 months old when he was officially discharged from the hospital, he still only weighed approximately 5 pounds. “He came home with oxygen, a feeding tube that went in his nose that I had to learn how to place, and all kinds of medications that we had to administer to him around the clock”, Camille said. “He was still very much a NICU baby who had a significant amount of medical needs.”
When the referral to Aprendamos’ Early Intervention Program came in, Camille and her husband Dustin weren’t sure the reasoning behind it. Soon, they were surrounded by a team that included a Speech-Language Pathologist, Physical Therapist, Massage Therapist, and more. “You know, of course, with a baby that’s under 5 pounds, I couldn’t understand why we would need these services. But the real reasons become so clear”, Camille said. With Ryder being intubated in the NICU for three and a half months, along with the need for a feeding tube, he developed a food intolerance and oral aversion. “His Speech-Language Pathologist came in and really worked with him on coordinating his suck, swallow, breathe technique so that we could work on his feedings.”
After being confined to an incubator for so long in the NICU, Ryder also benefited from physical therapy. Camille shared, “His physical therapist helped him start getting motion into his body for the first time. Being so small and having to be in a nest that they build out of blankets, there’s just not a lot of motion. Ryder’s PT was able to work with us to check those reflexes and make sure everything’s developing exactly how it should.” Along with physical therapy, a massage therapist helped Camille and Dustin learn about how therapeutic touch could help Ryder with gut motility, oxygenization, temperature regulation, blood pressure regulation, and even help develop brain synapses and carry messages to his brain.
Ryder’s progress was nothing short of miraculous. He began meeting all of his milestones, and although he was potentially ready to graduate from the program, his physical therapist was still concerned about his small stature. Wanting to ensure Ryder could climb stairs, use playground equipment, and navigate the world without issues, his therapists kept him on the early intervention program until he graduated at the age of three.
While Ryder was living a normal childhood, his experience as a premature NICU baby changed Camille and Dustin’s entire world. The local March of Dimes chapter approached them and asked if they would share Ryder’s story. They became the March of Dimes ambassador family two years in a row, helping to advocate and fundraise for the cause. Camille was asked to join the organization’s professional marketing board, and later became their spokesperson throughout New Mexico and part of Texas. “It was a game changer and an eye opener. I don’t think my son would have had the outcome he had if we hadn’t had some of the research in place and certain medicines that really helped him thrive”, she said.
That experience helped to ignite a passion in Camille to find a way to do more for premature infants and families across New Mexico. Professionally, she served as the NICU Family Liaison at Memorial Medical Center, where she really immersed herself in her work. “I really got entrenched with a population that I think is very underserved in New Mexico and Las Cruces,” she shared. In order to offer additional resources to families, she also became a certified lactation counselor. Ultimately, this led to the founding of The Wee Warriors Project, a 501c3 organization with a mission to provide funds, services, and resources to families and the local entities that offer them assistance. Through the organization’s work, Camillie and her team are committed to making a positive impact on the lives of this vulnerable population and their loved ones and strive to enhance better outcomes throughout New Mexico. Seven years later, The Wee Warriors Project is making an impact not only in Doña Ana County, but has expanded their efforts to serve Chavez County, Lincoln County, and have even worked with NICU’s in Albuquerque. “We’re growing throughout the state and really working now with rural hospitals to help them get equipment that they need, because when a rural hospital that doesn’t have a NICU has a premature, medically fragile baby, come in, they have to stabilize and hold that baby until the receiving higher-level hospital can come in to help.”
Looking back on Ryder’s journey and her professional path, Camille can see just how much of an impact early intervention can make in the lives of not only the children that desperately need it, but also their families. “Something I look back on with a lot of joy is that I was lucky enough to know our Speech-Language Pathologist, Amanda Brown, prior to coming into the program. She would do a lot of sensory stuff with Ryder, and one day, they took over the back porch with three cans of shaving cream. They just went at it, and they had a ball! And although he was one of those kids that did have some of those sensory issues, Ryder had such a comfort level with her. They were finger painting on our sliding glass doors, and it was all over the porch, and pretty soon it was on the dogs. It was just one of those memories that he won’t remember, but it’s one of the memories from his childhood that I’ll always remember. It just made us realize that we were entering a normal that was so heavily celebrated.”
Thank you, Ryder, Camille, and Dustin, letting Aprendamos be a part of your journey. We look forward to celebrating Ryder’s continued milestones and witnessing all the amazing moments in your family’s life!
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