NAGS HEAD, N.C. — July 15, 2026 — Outer Banks Health received a CuddleCot™ for its Labor and Delivery Department on Wednesday, July 10, a generous gift from Ashlie’s Embrace made possible by the Maroon and Hopkins families. A CuddleCot is a cooling device that gives families experiencing the loss of an infant additional time to hold and lie with their child following delivery.

“On behalf of Outer Banks Health, I would like to extend our heartfelt gratitude to the Maroon family and Ashlie’s Embrace for this extraordinary gift. Through your generosity, our Labor & Delivery team now has a CuddleCot, which will provide families experiencing the heartbreaking loss of a baby with precious additional time to hold, love and say goodbye to their child,” said Lisa McGaha, director of Labor and Delivery at Outer Banks Health (OBH).

Erin Maroon and her husband, Tony, along with their son, AJ, presented the gift to OBH team members in remembrance of Erin’s late father, Rick Hopkins, who cherished the Outer Banks, and their daughter, Ashlie, who was stillborn before her birth. Ashlie was Rick’s first grandchild, and in her memory, Ashlie’s Embrace works to provide CuddleCots to hospitals across the country.

“We are profoundly grateful to the Maroon and Hopkins families, in association with Ashlie’s Embrace, for transforming their own loss into a legacy of love that will touch families here on the Outer Banks for years to come. This generous gift ensures that families experiencing the heartbreaking loss of a baby are given something that cannot be replaced: time. Time to hold their child, create precious memories, and begin the healing process. And in this time, we are reminded that even in our darkest moments, compassion can bring comfort, hope and healing,” said Jennifer Schwartzenberg, director of Community Outreach and Development at Outer Banks Health.

Outer Banks Health is sincerely thankful for this gift, and for the dedication, compassion and generosity of the Maroon and Hopkins families and Ashlie’s Embrace in helping care for families across the Outer Banks.

Pictured: Outer Banks Health team members surround Ashlie’s Embrace team and CuddleCot.

Pictured: Dedicated plaque in remembrance of Rick Hopkins and Ashlie Maroon on the CuddleCot case.

About Outer Banks Health

Outer Banks Health is a growing health system that provides a range of health and wellness services for our community. Designed especially to meet the health needs of our coastal community, whose year-round population of 35,000 swells to over 250,000 in the summer season, we’re first in the state for patient satisfaction, first in the nation to pilot groundbreaking rural health cancer programs, and the very first to be designated a Dementia Friendly Hospital. We work with our partners, ECU Health and Chesapeake Regional Healthcare, along with other health organizations throughout North Carolina and Virginia, to help our residents and visitors access the best possible care for their diagnosis. Many times we deliver that care right here, close to home.