Soldier witnesses son’s birth via Skype

WhenAir ForceAir-manFirst ClassChris-tian (Chris) Lopezwasdeployed to theMiddleEast lastApril, hiswifeAmber, 18,was pregnantwith their second child anddue in September. OnSat-urday, Sept. 10, Chris, 20,was able towitness thebirth of his son,DeclanJamesLopez, born at 9:27a.m. at St.MaryMercy’sHospital’s BirthingCenter,via Skype.“I’m extremely thrilled

and happy,” he said. “Theexperiencemade it feellike a little piece of home,actually being able to

see everything as it hap-pened.”Prior to the birth, the

SouthLyon couple fre-quently kept in touchusing Skype, a softwareapplication that allowsusers tomake voice andvideo calls and chats overthe Internet. Knowing oth-ermilitary couples hadused this technology dur-ing labor and delivery,Amber approached herOB/Gyn, TimJohnson,M.D., ofWestsideObstet-rics&Gynecology, a staffphysician at St.MaryMer-cy in Livonia. “Dr. Johnsonwas really excited about it

whenwe first started talk-ing about it,” explainedAmber.In a collaborative effort,

St.MaryMercy physi-cians, BirthingCenter andinformation technologystaff came together for St.MaryMercy’s first Sky-pe birth broadcast.Hav-ing a difficult delivery oftheir first child, 1-year-old daughterAddison, “wewere determinedAmberwas going to have a goodexperience this time,” saidDeborahAinsworth, a reg-istered nurse andBirthingCenter director. Awebcamand laptopwere set up

bedsidewhereChris couldview the action just as ifhewere in the room.Arriving a fewdays ear-

ly, the 7 pound, 12 ounce,21-inch babyboywasborn on his great-grand-mother’s birthday.Hewasdelivered by on-call OB/GynKarolOtteman,D.O.“As amilitary family, the

distance can be hard, butthis experiencewas real-ly nice,”Amber said. “Thiswas somuchbetter thanjust being on the phonebecause he could actuallysee him live. St.MaryMer-cy took care of everythingandmade it perfect.”

(L) LOCAL NEWS online at hometownlife.comA6 Observer & Eccentric | Sunday, September 18, 2011

Wayne County Com-missioner Joan Geb-hardt (D-District 12)joined Chairman GaryWoronchak, CountyExecutive Robert Fica-no and Sheriff BennyNapoleon in a ground-breaking ceremonyThursday on a $300 mil-lion state-of-the-art jailfacility.The new 715,000-

square-foot WayneCounty Jail will belocated downtownacross from Frank Mur-phy Hall of Justice onproperty bordering Gra-tiot, St. Antoine, Clintonand the Chrysler Ser-vice Drive. It is sched-uled to open July 2014.“It is the responsibil-

ity of the Wayne Coun-ty Commission underthe county charter toapprove contracts andensure that the peo-ple’s best interests arein order with a projectof this magnitude,” saidGebhardt, who mademotions on severalfronts to see the projectthrough. “The Commis-sion has done its job andI have to feel excitedabout the jobs this willbring to so many hard-working families in ourarea.”According to Geb-

hardt, the new jail willsave the county moneyby using new technolo-gies and the latest bestpractices for prisonermovement and super-vision, and will alsocreate safer environ-ments for prisoners andemployees.“I say with confidence

that we have done ourjob well, and we standhere as partners in thisambitious and outstand-ing venture for whichwe are breaking groundtoday,” Woronchak said.It is also estimated

that more than 2,000jobs will be created by

the project, which is oneof the largest construc-tion initiatives WayneCounty has launched inseveral years.The facility will have

2,192 beds and houseprisoners who wouldcurrently be in twodowntown jails and ajail in Hamtramck. Thedowntown jails, builtin 1929 and 1981, areexpected to be demol-ished. The fate of theHamtramck facility, inoperation since 1991,remains unclear.Video visitation will

be one new feature forthe facility as prison-ers will now be able tomeet with relatives andclergy from their cellsby way of cameras andtelevision screens.“Building a new jail

isn’t cause to cele-brate,” Ficano said.“What we are sayingis in these economictimes, you have to lookat everything in termsof improving efficien-cy and cutting costs.That’s what this projectwill do.”Wayne County, in an

effort to stimulate localeconomic activity, useda consulting firm toprequalify contractors.Presently, approximate-ly 425 potential con-tractors have been pre-qualified. Of those can-didates, 60 percent areWayne County- and Cityof Detroit-based.“There is no question

this center is crucialto alleviating many ofour fiscal issues,” Sher-iff Napoleon said. “Weknow that we cannotincarcerate our way outof the ills plaguing ourcounty. However, wecan take the measuredsteps to streamline oursystem so that mon-ey we have available isbeing used to its utmostbenefit.”

Amber Lopez holds baby Declan James while father Chris watches from the laptop screen.

A webcam was hooked onto the baby warmer so Chriscould view Declan.

County officialsbreak groundon new jail

Soldier witnessesson’s birth via Skype

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