A Burlington County girl owned the title for a full half-hour before any competition arrived.
Burlington County's newest resident, all eight pounds of her, was anxious to get a start on life, arriving at 12:01 a.m., making her the first baby of 2016 in New Jersey.
Her name is Madison Gaskill, and she was born at Virtua Memorial Hospital in Mt. Holly. Mom Nicole is doing fine.
In the northern part of the state, the competition was stiff for the honor.
The first baby in that part of the state arrived at 12:34 at Mountainside Hospital - after his mother's second trip to the maternity ward.
Stephanie Bono, of Paterson, said she'd had contractions since a few days before Christmas. Two days after Christmas, convinced that labor had started, she went to Mountainside, only to discover labor hadn't progressed enough. Her due date was Jan. 7.
That baby, Kendrick Liam De Pew, made up for that false alarm with the speed of his arrival: Bono gave birth barely an hour after she and Raheem De Pew, the baby's father, arrived at the hospital. That timing took her by surprise, as she had been in labor for 23 hours for her first child, now two years old.
As for the honor of being among the first babies born in the new year, she said after the ups and downs of the past two weeks, she was just happy the birth went smoothly.
Meanwhile, in Newark, two women were vying for the city's first baby - unbeknownst to them, of course - and ended up giving birth just one minute apart.
At Trinitas Regional Medical Center, little Gianna Isabella D'Onfrio made her debut at 12:55 a.m., weighing 6lb., 8oz. The mother is Giovanna Rosero, the father Elbio D'Onofrio, of Union.
Giovanna Rosero and Elbio D'Onofrio, of Union, show off their daughter, Gianna Isabella D'Onfrio, who clocked in at 12:34 a.m. New Year's Day. Nurse Julia Wesolowski aided the delivery. (Photo courtesy of Trinitas Regional Medical Center) In a Trinitas tradition, the new family will receive a layette gift basket of crocheted hat, sweater, blanket, booties and other items, handmade by the South Plainfield Women's Senior Knitting and Crochet Club.
At nearly the same time, a few miles away, another baby girl, Alanna Brown, was born at University Hospital at 12:56 weighing in at 8 lbs. 2 oz. Her mother is 19-year-old Aleia Brown, of Newark. This is her first child. native and resident of Newark, graduate of Malcolm X Shabazz High School. This is her first child. The father is Shaquan McCollum.
Kathleen O'Brien may be reached at kobrien@njadvancemedia.com. Follow her on Twitter @OBrienLedger. Find NJ.com on Facebook.
