Christian Michael Hernandez was born to Michael and Lindsay Hernandez of Riverview on February 25, 2016. Within minutes of his birth, doctors discovered Christian’s trachea was not attached to his lungs, rendering it impossible for him to breathe. The couple lost their newborn shortly after.
In their grief, Lindsay and Michael vowed to honor their son’s death by being a light in the community by helping others amid their struggles. One year later on Christian’s first heavenly birthday, the couple established the Christian Michael Hernandez Foundation.
“We wanted to take something that was so unbelievably tragic and communicate that surviving it can be for good and for God’s purpose,” explained Lindsay, co-founder of the Christian Michael Hernandez Foundation.
“Every year on Christian’s birthday, we do ‘Kindness for Christian,’” said Lindsay. “It’s a day with purposeful acts of kindness where we set out to be a light in our community. But we also have people who volunteer all year with our foundation.”
The foundation’s ‘Be the Light’ project is based on the Bible verse Matthew 5:16 encourages volunteers to shine before others by doing good deeds that glorify God. Its vision is to make a difference by impacting the lives and circumstances of others, one good deed at a time.
This year, two women have gone above and beyond serving others by being ‘the light’ in their communities. They have donated food and medical supplies, adopted families at Christmas, donated to children in hospitals and provided stuffed animals to the Hillsborough County Sheriff Office (HCSO) for deputies to hand out to children in crisis situations.
Lindsay concluded, “Our little boy’s life was so very short but so very mighty, and he is changing the world without ever having touched the ground.”
The Christian Michael Hernandez Foundation is a 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization and is in search of volunteers willing to donate their time, trade or talents. From monetary donations to business owners giving goods or services, the foundation will find a way to bless others in need.
For more information or to donate to the foundation, visit www.christianmichaelhernandez.org.
