A very special delivery for Lawrence couple

Perhaps she was impatient with the Route 1 traffic, but newborn Leanne Taylor Griffiths couldn’t wait to make her arrival to the world at the hospital. The Lawrence infant was born in her parents’ car at the South Brunswick Police Department parking lot on Saturday.

By: Joseph Harvie
SOUTH BRUNSWICK — Some mothers begin the story of how their children were born by describing how intense and crazy the trip to the hospital was.
   But, when Lawrence resident Marie Griffiths tells that story to her daughter, Leanne Taylor, there will be a few things not included in most run-of-the-mill birthday retellings.
   Leanne Taylor was born in the passenger seat of her family’s Honda Accord on Saturday in the parking lot of the South Brunswick Police Department on Route 522.
   "I was in the front of the car. It was unusual, it was scary," Ms. Griffiths said. "But I’m here and the baby is well, so that’s great."
   After labor pains set in earlier in the evening, Ms. Griffiths and her husband, Ian, began the drive to Robert Wood Johnson University Hospital in New Brunswick from Danielle Court in Lawrence. But before they got halfway there, things got unusual.
   Ms. Griffiths said the couple were dropping their son, Nathaniel, 6, off at her sister-in-law’s house in South Brunswick when she got the feeling that she wasn’t going to make it to the New Brunswick hospital.
   "On the way from to the hospital my water had broken and the contractions came a lot faster, like 2 to 3 minutes apart," Ms. Griffiths said. "We were on (Route) 522, so we pulled into the police station and my husband said we would wait here and go to the hospital in an ambulance because we are still a half-hour away."
   Ms. Griffiths said that once her husband pulled into the station’s parking lot, he realized getting to the hospital in time would be out of the question and he quickly began looking for an entrance.
   "He turned inside the parking lot and that was when I felt something coming out and it was the baby," Ms. Griffiths said. "The kid did not want to wait."
   Luckily, Mr. Griffiths spotted an ambulance from Robert Wood Johnson University Hospital parked in the police station parking lot. Ms. Griffiths said that her husband then tried to get the attention of the paramedics blowing their car’s horn.
   Then Mr. Griffiths approached the paramedic, Bill Kellher, who was in the ambulance, to tell him that his wife was "having a baby."
   "I was inside studying and he comes up and bangs on the door, so I came outside and he says ‘My wife’s having a baby,’ " Mr. Kellher said. "I’ve spent 15 years as a medic and 12 years as an EMT before that and I’m like, ‘uh huh sure.’ "
   Mr. Kellher said he was studying for his nursing degree when Mr. Griffith approached him. He said he walked over to the couple’s car, opened the door and was shocked to see how far along in the process Ms. Griffiths was.
   "I opened the car door and a young lady was there, and she was not having a baby, she was having the baby," Mr. Kellher said. "There was about a 15- to 20- second lead time and then it was time to catch the ball."
   Mr. Kellher said that once the baby was delivered, his partner, Richard Kausch, cleared the air passage, cleaned the baby off and wrapped it in some blankets.
   Mr. Kellher said this was not the first baby he delivered and said although the situation was exciting, all of the training he’s received over the years prepared him for the process.
   "We train so often and for so many things that you fall back to the training," Mr. Kellher said. "You just work the drill. It was exciting. Dad was excited. Mom was nervous. You fall back and do what your supposed to do, and if you do that, it works out."
   Ms. Griffiths said she was nervous about giving birth in her car, but once she saw the paramedics, her nerves calmed a bit.
   "I was more concerned with the baby being born outside of the hospital because it was very scary. What if there was a complication?" Ms. Griffiths said. "It was a great help when I saw the truck there because they were skilled to handle emergencies."
   The paramedics drove the mother and child to the New Brunswick hospital after the incident.
   Mr. Kellher said he was able to see the baby 30 minutes after he dropped the two off and was pleased to see they were both doing fine.
   "I saw the baby about a half-hour afterwards and I have to tell you, it’s adorable," Mr. Kellher said. "And mom and dad look happier. It’s one of those times when life works out well."
   Ms. Griffith said the 6-pound 7-ounce Leanne Taylor has been doing fine since the delivery. The two were released from the hospital Monday and are now spending time in their Lawrence home.
   Ms. Griffith said that it was an amazing situation to be in and she was grateful to have received help from Mr. Kellher and Mr. Kausch.
   "It was a miracle driving to the back lot and having them around on Saturday," Ms. Griffiths said.