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Helping families navigate the NICU journey, one miracle at a time.

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Bring Today Is a Good Day to Your Team

Book Martha & Paul Sharkey—founders and parents with lived NICU experience—or our NICU Family Advocates for impactful talks, workshops, and panels.

Check out what others have to say!

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Opening Keynote • 2025 Annual Meeting

National Association of Neonatal Nurses. Palm Springs

UnitedHealth Group Annual Sales Meeting

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NICU Family Advocates™

Trained family advocates who offer elevated bedside care to families currently navigating the NICU.

This option is great for:​

  • staff in-services

  • grand rounds add-on sessions

  • family advisory councils

  • conferences

  • resident education

  • NICU staff education

Martha & Paul Sharkey, Founders 

Founders of Today Is a Good Day and NICU parents who have navigated extreme prematurity, loss and complex diagnoses.

  • Parents of 23-week twins, Claire & Mary; experienced profound loss when Mary died 14 days after birth

  • Welcomed a son, William, in 2018 diagnosed with trisomy 18, who passed shortly after birth.

  • Bring lived experience to conversations about NICU care, loss, hope, and partnership with families

  • Lead sessions on nonprofit leadership, fundraising, and sustainable growth

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    • Family-Centered Care That Works: what families remember, what helps, and what harms

    • Communication in High-Stakes Moments: clarity, empathy, and consistency across shifts

    • Partnering With Parents as Teammates: building trust without adding burden to staff

    • Supporting Families Through Complex Diagnoses & Loss: trauma-informed care and compassionate continuity

    • NICU Nurse Development: resilience, boundaries, and sustainable compassion

    • Bridging the Gaps: collaborating across disciplines to support outcomes + experience

    • Ethics, uncertainty, and humanity in the NICU: navigating hard conversations (panel-friendly)

    • How to Build a Successful Nonprofit: mission, governance, programs, and partnerships

    • Fundraising 101: telling your story, building donors, events, and stewardship

    • Community trust + impact: measuring what matters and communicating results

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Paul and Martha Sharkey are among the most compelling speakers I’ve experienced. Their vulnerability, authenticity, and connection on stage bring their personal story to life in a way that is both heartbreaking and deeply hopeful — not just for the families they serve, but for the thousands of lives their work will continue to impact. Audiences don’t just hear their story; they leave inspired, transformed, and compelled to act with empathy and purpose.

Rick Target

Senior Vice President, Talent

Optum

Today Is A Good Day creates one of the most heartfelt and unforgettable social responsibility experiences I’ve ever been part of. Martha is a truly gifted presenter—she shares her family’s NICU journey with such honesty, grace, and courage that you can feel the room shift. Her story touches people in a deeply human way. The bonding square activity that follows becomes so much more than a craft; it becomes a meaningful act of love and support for families who need it most. Every time, participants walk away moved, inspired, and grateful to have contributed. Many immediately want to bring the experience to others. This nonprofit leaves a lasting imprint on every heart in the room.

Deb McCall

VP, Sales Readiness - Strategic Sales Enablement & Experience

UnitedHealthcare

Incredible. Powerful, emotional, motivational, there aren’t enough words I can say to describe how much I loved this presentation! The Sharkey’s are incredibly dynamic speakers and to be able to share their story with the vulnerability they do, is what allows them to connect with every single person in the audience. I have no doubt every single one of us, in the room of hundreds, felt a personal connection, like we were sitting having coffee with them. Truly incredible & such an inspirational NICU journey as well!

National Assoc of Neonatal Nurses Annual Conference 2026 Attendee

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