Baby born at Mon Health just after ball drop

Savanna Shriver, Times West Virginian, Fairmont
·2 min read

Jan. 4—MORGANTOWN — The first baby born in 2023 at Mon Health Medical Center arrived January 1, just after the ball drop.

Parents Ashley Conn and Zachary Gooden welcomed baby girl Carmella Louise Gooden into the world at 12:14 a.m.. She weighed five pounds, 13 ounces and measured 16.5 inches long.

"We are very excited and honored for her to be celebrated as a New Year baby," parents Conn and Gooden said.

At Mon Health Medical Center, the Family Birth staff was equally excited and happy to celebrate the new year with Carmella's birth.

"We were all very excited and happy to have the opportunity to welcome the very first New Year's baby for our area. It mad our birth center celebration extra special that night and made us proud," Mon Health Medical Center Women's Health Services Co-Medical Director Dr. Craig Herring said.

On average in the United States, the number of babies born drops during the winter months, but an estimated 11,000 are born on January 1, according to UNICEF.

Mon Health System merged with Charleston Area Medical Center to form Vandalia Health in September 2022 to create a network of physician clinic, outpatient centers and hospitals across North Central West Virginia. Their goal is to make health care more accessible and affordable to the communities it serves.

"By sharing our expertise and resources, we can strengthen health care throughout West Virginia while continuing to keep and attract the most skilled doctors, nurses and staff in our communities," according to their website.

There are six hospitals — Mon Health Medical Center in Morgantown, Mon Health Preston Memorial Hospital in Kingwood, Mon Health Stonewall Jackson Memorial Hospital in Weston, Mon Health Marion Neighborhood Hospital in White Hall; the first small format hospital in West Virginia, Mon Health-DASCO Home Medical Equipment in Morgantown and Weston and The Village at Heritage Point. Affiliate Hospitals include Grafton City Hospital in Grafton and Highland-Clarksburg Hospital in Harrison County.

"Our job is to take care of our patients close to home. It's important for us that when patients have a health issue, we want to keep them close to where their family and their support systems are," Mon Health System CEO and President David Goldberg said.

Reach me at sshriver@timeswv.com or 304-367-2549.