An unusual encounter between a newborn baby’s mother and a stranger at a theme park in Florida leads to a lifesaving diagnosis for the six-month-old baby.
According to ABC News, back in July 2024, Sarah Love and her husband Micah for the first time went to a theme park near their home in Lake Alfred, Florida, with all of their six children.
During the visit, Love noted that a man was looking at his six-month-old son Lincoln. At first, she did not think much of it, but when she walked past the man again, he stopped and made a lifesaving revelation about his son.
The 35-year-old mom told Good Morning America, “He introduced himself (as a firefighter) and mentioned that he was a first responder. He said he noticed Lincoln and how very jaundiced he was, and he didn't want to scare us... but he just thought it might be a good idea for Lincoln to get some medical attention."
Love said she, instead of feeling scared, felt “reassured” because the strangers’ comment confirmed the symptoms that she was also noticing.
After speaking to the stranger who introduced himself as a first responder, she called a pediatrician, and on the doctor’s recommendation, she took her son to a local hospital for bloodwork, where, after examination, they transferred Lincoln to a specialty hospital, Nemours Children's Hospital in Orlando.
Four weeks after meeting with the stranger, Lincoln's parents learned that their son has a genetic disorder that mainly affects the liver and the heart called Alagille syndrome.
Love, in her message to the stranger, said, “I don't think there are enough words that can honestly describe how thankful our family is. Thank you from the bottom of my heart. It was a tough thing to go through, but because of that one small thing that he did, look at how much of an impact he had on Lincoln and on our family. I just want to say thank you."
To note, as per the Genetic and Rare Diseases Information Center at the National Institutes of Health, Alagille syndrome is a chronic, lifelong condition that affects less than 50,000 people in the United States.
