A 22-year-old woman from North Carolina recently learned more about her birth history.
Janea Watson stated, “I’ve never seen a baby picture of me.”
On January 21, Watson reunited with three of the Winston-Salem firefighters who assisted in her delivery more than twenty years ago.
It was a special occasion for everyone involved.
“I was just shocked and excited,” Watson said.
On November 10, 1992, firefighters from the Winston-Salem Fire Department responded to a medical emergency.
“It happened on Nov. 10 at 6:27 in the morning,” stated Ron Hepler, the former fire captain of Station 3.
Hepler recalled that it was his crew’s twelfth call of the night.
“Nothing got in our way. We got out, went in, the grandma said ‘we didn’t call any firefighters.’ I said ‘when the ambulance gets here, we’ll back out the way,’” Hepler said.
Moments later, the mother announced, “the baby was coming,” and Hepler acted swiftly to catch the newborn.
“They said the umbilical cord was wrapped around her neck. They had to move in fast… they did a terrific job. Once she cried, that was it. They knew everything was safe,” Janea’s grandmother, Jennie Watson, said.
Early one morning 22 years ago E3 (Captains Helper & Holmes & FF Brock) responded to a medical call where they delivered a beautiful baby. Today Jenae Watson was reunited w/ that crew! #OurWhy #NotJustaJob .#WSFire 107 pic.twitter.com/khnxqFd50L
— Winston-Salem FD (@cityofwsfire) January 21, 2023
Jennie arranged a reunion six months later, and while the firefighters remembered the sweet moment, Janea was too young.
Janea’s grandmother arranged another reunion 22 years later, and it was one that the young woman will never forget.
“I want to say thank you, and I’m grateful for them,” she said.
“That was my first time seeing a baby picture of me and hearing the story about my birth,” Janea said.