Karly Drue Williams was the first baby reported to be born in Maine in 2019, arriving at 12:09 a.m. Tuesday at Northern Light AR Gould Hospital in Presque Isle, in the upper reaches of Aroostook County.
Twelve minutes later on the coast of Cumberland County, Lev McGuckin, son of Anna and Jarlath McGuckin of Portland, clocked in at 12:21 a.m. Tuesday at Maine Medical Center’s Family Birth Center in Portland, said Chelsea Miller, hospital spokeswoman.
Other New Year’s Day babies born in Maine included Layla Grace White, daughter of Rebecca and Chris White of Dixmont, who was delivered at 3:44 a.m. Tuesday at Northern Light Eastern Maine Medical Center in Bangor.
Rebecca and Chris White of Dixmont welcomed their baby girl, Layla Grace White at 3:44 a.m. Jan. 1 at Northern Light Eastern Maine Medical Center. Layla weighs 7 pounds, 9 ounces, and is 20 ¼ inches long.
Karly Drue, daughter of Danielle Doyle and Kyle Williams of Houlton, weighed 8 pounds, 1 ounce, and measured 19 inches long, said Karen Gonya, Gould Hospital spokeswoman.
The couple made the 45-mile trip to Presque Isle soon after Doyle’s water broke Monday afternoon, just hours before a winter storm hit the region. Doyle was one of three moms in labor Monday evening, but the other two gave birth before midnight.
Karly is the fourth child in this blended family, joining older siblings Blake, 6, Harmonee, 5, and Maliya, 2. Doyle said the kids are thrilled about the new baby, especially Blake, who is deaf and communicates in sign language.
“He was so excited when we were getting ready to go to the hospital,” Doyle said. “He slipped some Slim Jims in my pocket to help take care of me and was signing to his sister about the new baby being on the way.”
Doyle is a certified nursing assistant at Madigan Estates in Houlton and Williams works in the woods in the Allagash River region. Karly was delivered by Dr. Quang Nguyen with nurses Jessica Bennett, Diane Deschesne and Kim Tompkins.
Jarlath and Anna McGuckin of Portland spend time with their son Lev, who was born at 12:21 a.m. on New Year’s Day at Maine Medical Center. Lev weighed 8 pounds, 8 ounces, and was 23 inches long.
Lev McGuckin was more than a week overdue when he arrived at Maine Medical Center early Tuesday, said his father, Jarlath McGuckin. His mother, Anna, went to the hospital Sunday night to begin medically induced labor.
The couple’s first child, Lev weighed 8 pounds, 8 ounces, and measured 23 inches.
“We’re both over the moon,” Jarlath McGuckin said.
A Sanford native, McGuckin is director of program development for CIEE, an international education exchange agency. The couple met when he was working in St. Petersburg, Russia, Anna’s native city. She is a program coordinator at CIEE and a personal stylist who recently started a business making boutique balloon arrangements.
Layla Grace, who was born at Eastern Maine Medical Center, weighed 7 pounds, 9 ounces, and measured 20 1/4 inches long, said Benjamin Speed, hospital spokesman. She has a 1 1/2-year-old sibling.
Rebecca White is a manager at Rodeway Inn in Bangor and Chris White is a track laborer with Pan Am Railways.
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