One of the scariest days of Felicia’s life was the day that her son, Jayden, was born. Many moms can relate to that fear, but it was different for Felicia—she wasn’t even aware that she was pregnant.
On May 15, 2018, the fire department and an EMS crew were responding to a cardiac call when the call about Jayden’s birth came through, both calls happened to be in the same apartment complex. When they heard how critical the birth call was, the fire crew split up so that half of them could respond to the original call and half of them could assist Felicia and Jayden. The ambulance headed toward the cardiac call was diverted to help with the birth call, as well.
Jayden had been born in the toilet at Felicia’s home when she was 30 weeks along in the pregnancy. He weighed only 3.1 pounds and was not breathing. The fire crew arrived first to help Jayden until paramedics Brandon Miller and John Easterly arrived with the ambulance. The crews worked together to pull Jayden from the toilet, resuscitate him and give him proper care so that he was ready for transport.
The paramedics then intubated Jayden and brought him to a pediatric hospital. By the time Jayden got there, he was in stable condition. Jayden spent about six weeks in the NICU at Randall Children’s Hospital before he was released. Because of their heroic actions, the crews involved in the rescue received the Fire Chief’s Certificate in December 2018.
Felicia recognizes that the outcome could have been vastly different had it not been for the hard work of Brandon and John. This year, she decided to invite them and the Station 31 firefighters who had helped that day to Jayden’s first birthday party to show her appreciation. “Jayden had a great time with everyone,” Felicia said, “and I wanted them to know that no matter where we live, they will always be a part of his birthday celebration.”