Teen Steps Into Hospital With Shoebox. Nurse Opens It, She Can’t Believe Her Eyes

Teen Steps Into Hospital With Shoebox. Nurse Opens It, She Can’t Believe Her Eyes

Jeannie Joseph peered over the curtain, surreptitiously watching her mother deliver a baby at home. Because she was a naïve 14-year-old girl who had never seen or experienced childbirth before, she became increasingly curious with each glimpse she took.

Her mother, a nurse, had a pregnant acquaintance visit her that day. Her companion had only just stepped into their living room when she began to go into labor. Jeannie’s mother opted to help her friend deliver the baby at their home due to the urgency of the situation.

Amidst the screams and wails of pregnancy pains, Jeannie’s mother’s friend noticed her peering through the curtain and invited her in to grasp her hand for comfort.

Jeannie Joseph entered the living room gently, gripping the woman’s hand tightly and aiding her mother in whatever way she could. Jeannie was inspired to become a nurse after seeing her mother safely deliver a baby. She had no idea that one day, the survival of a prematurely born infant would be depending on her.

Jeannie Joseph, now a neonatal nurse at the SwedishAmerican hospital in Rockford, Illinois, was attending to her patients in the special care nursery when she was contacted from the emergency room and told that someone was waiting to see her.

While she hurriedly marched along the emergency hall, she wondered who it was. She noticed a teenage male wearing a hoodie and carrying what seemed to be a shoebox. His worried face was covered in beads of sweat, and he stared at her with tears welling up in his eyes. Jeannie realized something deep was bothering him right away.

“Hello there, what do you have in your hand?” Jeannie talked in a friendly tone, attempting to put the adolescent at ease. He didn’t say anything and instead handed her the shoe box.

“Oh, wow, a gift for me?” Thank you very much, kind Sir.” As she took the shoebox, Jeannie grinned. She opened the shoe box, eager to know what was inside, and her smile vanished almost instantly. What she witnessed astounded her.

An infant, wrapped in a dishtowel and weighing barely more than 3 pounds, was found inside the Shoebox.

“I’m sorry, I didn’t have any other options; I didn’t know what to do, and this was the only safe haven I could think of. We couldn’t care for him on our own, so we decided to give him up, I’m sorry,” the adolescent sobbed as he narrated how the baby was born six weeks early and prematurely. He implored her to assist him in caring for the child.

Jeannie had a lot of questions, but she knew the baby required medical help right away because a baby born prematurely normally needs warmth and nourishment, which this baby didn’t have. Each second that passed meant that the baby was in greater danger of dying.

Because their lungs haven’t fully matured, most premature babies can’t breathe adequately on their own for long periods. If they aren’t brought to a mechanical ventilator in time, the majority of them will die.

However, this infant, who was determined to live, was still breathing and clinging to life. Jeannie felt like she was a sponge soaked in human emotions at the time. “Oh my God, you poor baby,” she said softly, almost inaudibly, as her beating heart welled up with sorrow for the baby in her arms, still within the shoe box.

Without a single ounce of judgment, Jeannie transported the infant to the NICU, where she and other medical professionals treated the newborn for hypothermia, dehydration, and infection as a result of the ignorant parents’ likely use of unsterilized scissors to cut the baby’s umbilical cord. Jeannie discovered the gender of the baby as the operation was being performed.

The baby boy’s health was critical, as he had gone 15 seconds without breathing. The medical staff tried everything they could to resuscitate him, and Jeannie’s heart skipped a beat when she saw signs of life in the baby a few seconds later.

“Congratulations, everyone, on a job well done. We would have lost him in a few seconds more, but we made it, folks.” The doctor confirmed that the infant was now stable and that the operation had gone well. Sighs of relief and excitement began to fill the darkened operating room. Jeannie, who was overwhelmed at the time, felt as if her legs were made of jelly and found it difficult to stand. She couldn’t believe the little infant had been saved.

“You did a fantastic job, Jeannie; you’re a hero.” The doctor smiled at her. Jeannie felt quite pleased with herself, and she knew she would remember this moment for the rest of her life.

Jeannie realized she had completely forgotten about the baby’s father due to her rush to save the infant a few minutes after she ditched her safety gear. She returned to the area where she had left him, only to find him standing there, crying as if his soul might spill an ocean from his eyes.

“Ma’am, how is he doing? Is he all right?” With sobbing, the youngster inquired.

“He’s well, he’s a survivor,” she said with a smile, and she could sense the news sending waves of delight through him, to the point where he sat down on the floor, sobbing and smiling at the same time.

After his tears had dried, he began recounting the events leading up to the moment he brought the infant to the hospital.

“Son, I hope you understand that if you give up the kid right now, you’ll give up any rights you have to him as his father. I need you to think about it carefully because I don’t want you to make a decision you’ll regret.” Jeannie had told him. She presented him with a parental bracelet and told him to think about it before returning with the mother to see the child.

When Jeannie saw the teen the next day at the hospital, she was overjoyed. This time he was accompanied by a female, and Jeannie noted that the girl’s head was lowered to the ground as if she was embarrassed by both their actions as parents.

“Hi, my name is Jeannie Joseph,” Jeannie said as she slowly approached her. I’m assuming you’re the mother of that wonderful child over there. I understand your fear, shame, and embarrassment, but I want you to know that you both did everything right.” Jeannie’s loving remarks caused the girl’s face to light up as she looked up at her and began crying. Jeannie held her and assured her that everything would be alright.

Cherish Coates was the young lady’s name. Cherish admitted to concealing her pregnancy from her grandma, with whom she shared a home, because everyone expected her to graduate from high school and attend college. She knew she would disappoint her family since her mother, who had experienced an unexpected pregnancy herself, had warned her about her destiny.

Cherish stated that she was able to conceal her pregnancy from both her grandmother and her classmates. She had labor cramps at school on the day of the event and chose to return home early.

She arrived home from school and was about to bathe when her water broke and she successfully gave birth to the baby without any assistance. She called her boyfriend, who arrived later after climbing into her room on a ladder.

With paper scissors she kept in her school bag, he assisted her in delivering the placenta and cutting the umbilical cord. They were both at a loss for what to do next, so she put the baby in the shoebox with a message inside that read, “We love you, we are not just able to raise you. We want his name to be Allen Corey and we hope to be able to see you again, God will be watching over you.” And chose to give him away.

Jeannie kept Cherish updated on the baby’s health for a month until he was scheduled to be discharged. Cherish went to the hospital with her mother, who was taken aback by her daughter’s pregnancy news. Cherish’s grandma arrived a short time later and expressed her surprise as well, as she had been living with her and was unaware of the pregnancy.

Amid the awkwardness between mother, daughter, and granddaughter, Jeannie entered, calmly explaining everything that had happened and assuring them that Cherish’s future was still bright.

Allen was released after the family agreed to complete Jeannie’s studies while they cared for Allen. That was the last time Jeannie heard of the family for several years.

One day, Jeannie was scrolling through her Facebook feed when she came across a message from Cherish Coates. It was difficult for Jeannie to remember who she was talking to after twelve years, but Cherish reminded her of the incident, and Jeannie was delighted to hear from her.

Cherish informed her that she had become a mother of three children and was now residing in Arizona. Allen, a 12-year-old cadet at the United States Naval Academy, was likewise performing admirably. Cherish claimed Jeannie encouraged her to work as a nursing assistant in high school and as a law clerk in college to pursue a career as a mental health attorney.

Jeannie sat on her sofa, beaming from ear to ear as she reconnected with Cherish, who now found her as a source of inspiration. She laughed as her memories flashed back to the start of it all—the baby in the shoebox.

Sources

https://www.chicagotribune.com/news/breaking/ct-baby-in-shoebox-thirteen-years-later-met-20171013-story.html

https://www.godupdates.com/nurse-reunited-shoebox-baby-saved/

https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=C9H85B-axrs