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89 °F Forecast | Road Cams Tuesday, July 13, 2004 Today's News | Classifieds | Autos | Homes | Jobs | Tempo | Health | Community | Home Delivery SECTIONS Home Page Local News Sports Business Obituaries Life Opinion - Politics Tempo AP News Weather Classified Archives Site Map SPECIAL SECTIONS Since We Asked Outdoor Journal Prime Times Wellness Connection Readers' Choice Real Estate Showcase Joy Magazine Homelife Magazine Wedding Guide Rogue Valley's Finest EXTRA Newspaper in Education Personals Movie Times TV Times E The People MARKETPLACE Find a Car Find a Home Find a Job Classifieds Place an ad eSouthernOregon Automotive Communities Entertainment Publications Recreation Calendar CUSTOMER SERVICE Frequent Questions Advertising Information Home Delivery Employment Contact Us Media Kit Network Affiliate Oregon Road Conditions & Cams Email Story to a Friend January 3, 2003 Valley showers first tot with gifts By JONEL ALECCIA Mail Tribune The Rogue Valley’s first baby of the new year will not go without gifts, even though he was born at home instead of a hospital. Local listeners of radio station KRWQ showered newborn Jared Darrell Cox with presents after learning traditional offerings were unlikely to go to the county’s newest resident of 2003. "I just thought, well, man, that really sucks," said Larry Neal, program director and on-air personality for the radio station. "I just put it out there to the listeners. I mean, the baby doesn’t know any different." Listeners offered the fifth child of Lee and RaShea Cox gifts ranging from an embroidered quilt and a stuffed horse to custom stationery and free pizza. Word of the outpouring both touched and puzzled the new dad, who delivered Jared himself at about 5:15 a.m. Wednesday. "To me it’s great, but it doesn’t really matter," Lee Cox said. "We have a healthy baby." RaShea Cox, 28, went into labor at about 4:30 a.m. and delivered the 8-pound, 14-ounce boy less than an hour later. Others who read about the birth offered to pay the family’s electric bill and perhaps to find a job for the 30-year-old father, who was recently laid off from a manufacturing assembly post at Bear Creek Corp. Area hospitals traditionally offer gifts to the first babies of the year who arrive on their watch, said Michelle Halfhill, a spokeswoman for Rogue Valley Medical Center. "We like to celebrate our first baby," she said. "If it happens to be the first baby in the county, that’s great, too." Jared’s birth can be counted as the first in the county, said Hank Collins, Health and Human Services director. For home births, midwives fill out affidavits verifying the time and place of the birth, which becomes part of the official birth certificate, Collins said. Midwife Lisa Fincher missed Jared’s rapid birth by just a few minutes. Local hospitals distributed their bounty — baskets filled with everything from breast pumps and silver cups to balloons, flowers and gift certificates — to the babies who arrived first at each site. Providence Medford Medical Center’s BirthPlace boasted the first hospital birth of the new year. Karen Schaecher, 27, of Medford delivered Mathew Aaron at 1:12 p.m. At RVMC, Karina Esther Teran was born at 11:37 p.m. Wednesday. The 7-pound, 14-ounce girl is the new daughter of Antonia Teran of Medford. At Ashland Community Hospital, the first baby arrived at 3:19 a.m. Thursday. Brandon Connor Sands weighed 7 pounds, 13 ounces. He’s a son of Jay and Amanda Sands of Ashland. Reach reporter JoNel Aleccia at 776-4465, or e-mail [email protected] Mail Tribune Home Local News | Sports | Business | Obituaries | Life Opinion - Politics | AP News | Archives | Site Map E Southern Oregon | Classified Copyright © 1997-2004 Mail Tribune. All rights reserved. Privacy Policy | Terms & Conditions Website Feedback ADVERTISERS A D V E R T I S E R S RESOURCES Oregon Road Conditions & Cams SPECIAL SECTIONS Auto Finder Job Finder Home Finder Joy Magazine Homelife Magazine Tempo Readers' Choice Real Estate Showcase Since We Asked Food for Thought Wellness Connection Outdoor Journal Moving to Southern Oregon? Volunteer Opportunities Prime Times