Baby born in Michigan brewery's parking lot given appropriate middle name; brewery responds with special beer
KALAMAZOO, Mich. (WOOD) – A brewery in Kalamazoo, Michigan, is working on something special to commemorate the baby who was born in its parking lot a few months back.
It all started back on August 31, when the baby's mother, Kyle Baker, began experiencing contractions. A nurse advised her to come to the hospital, so she called husband Aaron Baker to come home from work.
The couple, already parents to two girls, did not expect the baby to be born just yet. Both of their daughters arrived a week later than expected, and they had planned to induce labor for their third child.
"After nine months, you're kind of like. 'All right, let's get this show on the road and everything.' I guess God heard me a little, little too much in everything: 'All right, you guys asked for it,'" Aaron Baker joked to Nexstar's WOOD-TV.
"We got about five minutes down the road, and I was kind of listening to her and watching her. And I was like, 'Man, this is this is getting bad. Like, oh gosh,'" he recalled.
Kyle Baker said the time between her contractions shortened to about a minute.
The Bakers got on the phone with 911, rushing toward the hospital. But when Aaron Baker saw the top of the baby's head, he pulled into the first open parking lot in front of One Well Brewing.
“The timing was literally perfect. Like he said, he threw the car and park, ran around, opened the passenger door just in time for the head to be safely in his hands,” Kyle Baker said.
The Bakers, of Vicksburg, say they had already intended to name their son Forrest. But in honor of his place of birth at One Well Brewing, they chose Wells as a middle name. (It's just a happy happy coincidence that the brewery has a seating section known as "The Forest," the couple said.)
One Well Brewing owner Chris O'Neill said staffers did not know about the birth until later much in the night, when the Bakers called for a to-go order to bring to the hospital. A few days later, he called the couple and spoke with Aaron Baker.
"He was telling me that they named the baby Forrest Wells and I think that's such a cool connection to the community," O'Neill said.
O'Neill is planning to return the favor. One Well Brewing has announced plans to debut a new beer in honor of Forrest's birth — a blonde ale with blood orange, to be called Special Delivery.
The beer will be available at the end of the month, the brewery's director of marketing told Nexstar. What's more, the Bakers visited the brewery to help brew up the first batch, as seen in photos shared to Facebook.
"It's been a fun one for us," a representative for the brewery said in a statement shared with Nexstar. "The best news is, the family is amazing. Super authentic couple. They deserve this."