Sacred Heart Medical Center at Riverbend welcomed its first baby of 2014 at 7:26 Wednesday morning. Emma Grace Baer is named after her maternal grandmother. She is the fourth child of Miriam and Levi Baer. Their three other children are all girls under the age of six.
The couple lives in Halsey, but is originally from Kentucky. They had planned for a homebirth, but opted for the hospital because the baby was found to have a cyst on her lung. Doctors say she appears to be in very good health but will need to be brought in for check-ups over the next few months.
Emma Grace can't claim to be the first baby born in 2014 at a local hospital. Another baby arrived at McKenzie-Willamette in Springfield just before her. Details have not been released.