SARASOTA, Fla. (June 13, 2025) – This Father's Day holds extra meaning for Andrew Marple, MD, a medical oncologist and member of Sarasota Memorial’s Brian D. Jellison Cancer Institute team. For the first time, Dr. Marple and wife Danielle will celebrate the holiday with both of their twin daughters—Adriana and Sophia—finally home and thriving.
Born prematurely in 2023 at just 25 weeks gestation, Adriana and Sophia faced an uphill battle from the very beginning. Their mother, Danielle Marple, APRN, a critical care nurse practitioner with First Physicians Group, developed severe early-onset preeclampsia and was hospitalized at SMH at only 23 weeks pregnant. Just over two weeks later, the twins were delivered when Danielle’s condition became critical.
Adriana weighed just 1 lb. 4 oz. at birth. Sophia was even smaller—only 11 oz. Despite the odds, both girls received expert, round-the-clock care in the SMH Neonatal Intensive Care Unit (NICU). Sophia was able to go home just in time for the Marple’s first Father’s Day in 2024. Adriana required nearly a full year hospitalized before joining her family at home.
Now reunited, Adriana and Sophia are making tremendous progress—healthy, happy, and catching up on their milestones. Their parents say the journey has been a testament not only to their babies’ strength, but also to the dedication of the neonatal intensive care team at SMH.
“You worry for so long when they're so sick in the NICU, ‘what is our life going to look like?’ And your brain goes to dark places and you think, are they going to be okay?” said Dr. Marple, a medical oncologist with Intercoastal Medical Group. “And here we are, healthy babies that we're able to travel with, take them places and they brighten up the room anytime anybody gets to meet them.”
Danielle added, “The care at SMH was next level. We obviously were very scared going into this whole situation, but everyone from every single area of the hospital really just exceeded our expectations and they've become like family to us.”
To add even more joy to this year’s Father’s Day celebration, the Marple family recently announced they are expecting a baby boy this fall.
Hear more from the Marple family in the below video:
To learn more about the maternity services at SMH, including the NICU, visit smh.com/baby.
About Sarasota Memorial Health Care System
Sarasota Memorial Health Care System is a regional medical center offering Southwest Florida’s greatest breadth and depth of care, with 2,500 physicians and advanced practice providers and nearly 2 million patient visits a year across its network of care. Sarasota County’s largest employer, the community-owned health system includes two full-service hospitals in Sarasota and Venice, freestanding ERs in North Port and Lakewood Ranch, a rehabilitation hospital, behavioral health hospital, skilled nursing facility and comprehensive network of outpatient centers, urgent care clinics and physician practices. Founded in 1925, SMH is celebrating its 100-year anniversary in 2025 and encouraging community members to visit smh.com/100 throughout the year for centennial events and updates.