A Christmas Miracle: Baby Born in Blizzard With the Help of Strangers
’Twas two days before Christmas 2022, and within the house, a soon-to-be mother began having contractions.
Erica and Davon Thomas were expecting their first child on Christmas Day, but around 11 p.m. on December 23, 2022, Erica’s contractions began. By Christmas Eve morning, they had intensified. Yet, with a massive winter storm burying their Buffalo home in snow, they found themselves trapped.
Desperate, Davon called 911. Emergency responders tried but couldn’t reach them. Panic set in.
“I started thinking, ‘Well, how is my baby going to get delivered safely?’” Davon recalled.
They realized they were on their own. Davon reached out to a friend. The friend posted a plea for help on a Buffalo Facebook group. What followed was an outpouring of kindness from strangers, including Raymonda Reynolds, a doula with five years of experience. She quickly connected with Davon and guided him through the delivery process over a video call.
“It was straight tunnel vision,” Davon said. “I realized how important this was, and all nerves went away.”
As Erica labored, Reynolds provided step-by-step instructions. She later added her friend, doula and nurse Iva Blackburn, to the call for additional support.
Then, at 3:31 p.m. on Christmas Eve, after an intense labor, Erica shouted:
“She’s here!”
“We started screaming like it was a Buffalo Bills touchdown,” Reynolds recalled. “It was the most beautiful thing I’ve been a part of.”
Baby Devynn Briell Thomas entered the world weighing 6 pounds, 9 ounces, and measuring 20 inches long. The doulas continued to assist, guiding the new parents through the afterbirth and umbilical cord care.
“I couldn’t have done it without them,” Davon said. “It was very comforting knowing they were there.”
With the storm still raging, the family needed a way to get to the hospital. Hours later, a man named Angel Lugo, who had seen the Facebook post, came to their rescue. The new parents and baby not park near their house because of the snow. They had to trek three blocks. They walked through knee-deep snow to reach his vehicle.
“It was like a scene out of a movie,” Davon said.
By Christmas morning, the family was safely at the hospital, and both Erica and Devynn were doing well. Once the snow melts, they plan to meet their guardian angels. These are the doulas who helped them bring their daughter into the world.
Facebook “can be messy sometimes, but it can be life-saving and life-changing,” Reynolds said.
This Christmas, one Buffalo family learned firsthand the power of community, kindness, and the miracle of life.
Sources:
- https://youtu.be/3fEFW3dTtNw
- https://www.cnn.com/2022/12/28/us/buffalo-baby-born-in-blizzard-doula-trnd/index.html
- https://chatgpt.com/
- https://app.pictory.ai/
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