“It may be too early to call the name-game a trend, but the early signs are certainly there,” said W. Howard Hall, MD of Medical Heights OB-GYN in Morganton. “I’ve had several new moms this year who commemorated the birth of their baby girls at Grace Hospital by naming them Grace, because they enjoyed their pregnancy, appreciated their care and liked the traditional beauty of the name.”

Dr. Hall added that Grace is also on the short list of names of several other mothers-to-be being seen by him and partner Alfred W. Hamer, MD. “It could be the start or, perhaps I should say re-birth, of a tradition with interesting links to our past,” he said.

Heather and David Brown of Morganton are the latest proud parents of a Baby Grace. Lillian Grace Brown made her debut at Grace Hospital on September 11, 2002, at a healthy 6-lbs. 3-oz.

She’s one of about 1200 babies delivered in a typical year at Grace and Valdese General Hospitals, members of the Blue Ridge HealthCare family.

Beyond the obvious connection to the hospital where she was born, the couple said their newest daughter’s name is a symbol of something equally precious – hope.

“Some said it was too bad she was born on September 11, but we see Lillian Grace as a symbol of hope. In our own way, we’re helping turn a negative into a positive. Life goes on and there’s a reason for living,” said Heather, whose family – has yet another Grace connection – are members of Grace Episcopal Church in Morganton.

“We believe she’s an expression of God’s grace. She completes our family and makes our circle even stronger,” she said.

David, who was present at Lillian Grace’s birth and cut her umbilical cord, called her a “big bright spot in the family” and the entire birth experience “humbling.”

For now, “Lillie,” as she’ll be called, isn’t concerned about name-dropping though. She’s happy to be an object of adoration clad in a pink blanket to 7-year-old sister, Elizabeth, and 5-year-old-brother, Alexander, who compete for the chance to hold their new tiny sibling.

“She’s the most wonderfullest baby I’ve ever seen,” beamed Elizabeth, a sentiment equally shared by grandparents, Vivian Woodbury and Lynn and Squeak Smith, and great grandparents Walter and Shirley McKeen, all of Morganton.

Ironically, Lillian Grace’s name is not the only family tie between the Browns and Grace Hospital.

When David was born at Grace Hospital in 1964, Earleen Cox was one of the nurses who took care of him and his mother. This time around – 38 years later -- she did the same for Heather and Lillian Grace.

“A lot of my babies are back and having babies or grandbabies,” said Mrs. Cox, a nurse for 45 years. “Many of them feel really close to this hospital.” Since her early days at the original Grace Hospital, located where the CoMMA now stands, she’s cared for thousands of newborns and has given a needed dose of confidence to many a new mom and dad.

Mrs. Cox recalls other Baby Graces over the years, but it’s been a while since the last one.

If Lillian Grace is starting a pattern, that’s just fine with her nurse.

“I’d sure welcome it,” she said.

For more information on the Blue Ridge HealthCare Family Centers, please call the Blue Ridge HealthCare General Information Line at 580-5800 or visit the Blue Ridge web site at www.BlueRidgeHealth.org

Ms. Ross, received her Bachelor of Science in Nursing from the Medical College of Virginia and completed her Master of Science in Nursing from Duke University along with her Post Masters Certification in Adult Nurse Practitioner with a focus in Oncology. She is currently the Director of Nursing Practice at Duke University Hospital and is a member of the Oncology Nursing Society, Sigma Theta Tau and North Carolina Nurses Association.

For more information on H.O.P.E. Support Group, contact Jan Hollar, Cancer Services Coordinator for Blue Ridge HealthCare at 580-6703.