First Baby Saved Under 'Safely Surrendered' Law In O.C. Wants To Thank Birth Mom
SANTA ANA (CBSLA.com) — The first baby saved under the Safely Surrendered Baby law in Orange County said he wants to thank his birth mother for giving him up.
Nicholas Dyer, 14, said: "If she didn't make that choice, my life would be completely different. I wouldn't have done the things that I've done and met the people I've met, have my family that I love so much."
Baby Doe or John Doe, as Nicholas was called, was only 2 days old when hospital records showed he was an abandoned newborn by his mother, who took him to a Santa Ana emergency room in 2002. He was in good health and well taken care of.
Wrapped in a blue baby blanket, the birth mom told nurses she could not care for newborn and did not know who the father was. The nurse noted the young mom, in her 20s, was in tears as she walked out of the hospital.
"How hard that must have been to bring him in and how grateful I am to her that she did the right thing," said Elisa Dyer.
"It breaks my heart, knowing that children are left out to die," the teen said.
The Dyers had tried for years to have kids. They even tried adopting a girl through the foster care system. But their quest ended in heartbreak when she was reunited with her birth mother.
They gave up hope until they met Nicholas. "He brought joy back into our lives after the loss we had gone through," Elisa said.
Nicholas is an accomplished soccer player with a private trainer. He loves school, his friends and his family.
Ken Dyer said he is proud of his son. "He's an amazing young man that has a heart of gold."
The state protects the identities of abandoned babies. But the Dyers decided to go public with their story for the first time because they want to share how much the law has meant to them and their son.
From 2001 to 2015, 770 newborns have been surrendered in California, according to the California Department of Social Services website.
