firefighter
Leah Berenson
Leah Berenson
March 21, 2023 ·  5 min read

Firefighter Adopts Baby Girl He Delivered on an Emergency Call.

A Tiffy Taffy Highlight Story: Sometimes, there are stories that are just too good, too beautiful, or too unbelievable to keep locked away. That’s why we scour the archives and bring some of them back to enjoy again. They may make you smile or shed a tear, but they’re always meant to add a little positivity to your day. This story is from January 2017. Enjoy! 

Public servants and first responders are tasked with some of the most dangerous jobs out there. They’re forced to interact with questionable characters and are expected to keep a level head while doing so. In contrast, they sometimes encounter precious gems that have the potential to leave a lasting impression on their hearts. In this heartwarming story, a firefighter adopts a beautiful baby girl and changes his family’s lives forever.

A Firefighter Carries on as Usual

In 2011, firefighter Marc Hadden, experienced a day unlike any other. The Myrtle Beach Firefighter from South Carolina woke up on November 14th, as he would any other day. Things had been relatively calm around the station when they received a call about a woman experiencing intense abdominal pain. “It was a normal slow day in November,” Hadden told TODAY during a 2017 interview. “We were sitting down to eat, hadn’t had a call all day.” When first responders arrived on scene, it didn’t take them long to note the young woman was in labor.

Unknowingly Rescuing His Future Daughter

Although he was a firefighter, not a doctor, Marc would have to help the struggling woman through delivery, as it appeared they wouldn’t make it to the hospital in time. “It was a pretty serious call for us,” he said. “We got her on some oxygen, started some IVs and literally as we were getting ready to leave the parking lot in the ambulance, my partner said, ‘We’re about to deliver a baby right here.’ We had no time to prepare. Before we could do anything — we hadn’t even cut her clothes — Gracie came right out. Immediately she was handed to me.” the firefighter explained.

After helping the new mother with her delivery, Marc called Beth to tell her he’d helped deliver a baby girl. She jokingly replied, “Can we keep her?” and it turned out that they could! The pair had been struggling to have a third baby so this to Beth seemed like fate. The firefighter told his wife that the mom was already struggling to raise a teenage son, prompting Beth to visit her the following day. “My heart just went out to this woman. I brought her a little prayer book and asked I could get anything for her.” Beth explained.

A Firefighter’s Wife Steps In

During their visit, the doctor came in to inform the mother that they’d be moving forward with the adoption process. At that moment, the new mother had a horrible revelation, “I can’t give my baby to someone I’ve never met.” She said. And that’s when it became clear to Beth that this was part of the plan, God’s plan. “Suddenly the opportunity was there for me to say that Marc and I had been praying about adoption for years,” Beth shared, “And she looked over at me and said, ‘I want you to adopt my baby.’ She had the nurse bring her in and I was able to hold Gracie for the first time. I called Marc and said, ‘I think we just had a baby.’”

The family was granted full custody by March 2012, and the pair, their two boys, and their new baby girl had completed their family. They settled on the name Rebecca Grace, referring to her as Gracie. “She is what we prayed for. It felt like winning the lottery.” Beth said.

Gushing Over Their Blessings

Hadden gushed over his daughter. In a 2017 interview with TODAY he said, “She’s amazing. She takes gymnastics, she’s getting ready to start kindergarten next year at the school where my wife teaches. She’s a pretty remarkable kid.” Sharing that he’s still a firefighter but doing so on a volunteer basis. “Most days it’s business as usual, getting Gracie to day care or gymnastics or soccer. Every once in a while, it will hit us, usually when we’re out on a date night … oh my gosh, my wife and I have been together for 15 years, we have three kids now! Sometimes it’s a bit overwhelming. Holy cow, this happened overnight, but we wouldn’t trade it for anything.”

He also said that the family has always been very open and honest about how Gracie came into their lives. He disclosed, “If you ask her where she was born, she says, ‘My daddy delivered me in the back of an ambulance.’ She knows the whole story. I wanted her to know as soon as she was old enough to understand. I didn’t want it to be this huge surprise. It still breaks my heart to think of one day having to explain it to her more in depth … because she doesn’t really 100% get it.” he continued, “Gracie and I have an amazing bond. We’re tighter than thieves. She is part of our family and that is absolutely the way it is,” he added. “We love her.”

Support from Outside

The firefighter and his family received so much support from friends and family. Some even donated money to help the family build an add-on room for Gracie. “I don’t know what we would have done because we have definitely outgrown our home. So, we’re just truly blessed to have friends that will pull together for us like this.”

After over a decade, the family is still thrilled to be together and was lucky enough to find their missing piece. Furthermore, they prevented one more tiny soul from being thrown into the foster care system. A system that has nearly 400,000 children in need of loving homes and families. Career choices like this firefighter are incredibly dangerous. On the other hand, they might occasionally find themselves pleasantly surprised by a life-changing encounter that blesses their lives forever.

Keep Reading: Mom wanted to give baby with Down syndrome to Foster care, so dad decides to raise his child all on his own

Sources

  1. Myrtle Beach firefighter adopts baby he delivers on call.” Daily Mail Online. Kaileen Gaul. January 21, 2017.
  2. Firefighter Marc Hadden adopts baby he delivered on the job.” People. Caitlin Keating. December 28, 2017.
  3. Firefighter adopts baby he delivered on emergency call: ‘she’s part of our family’. TODAY. Rheana Murray. February 6, 2017.