What are the chances that a new chapter for a family begins at the start of a new year? Some might call it coincidence, serendipity, fortuitous or just good fortune. But for a handful of Bay Area couples in San Jose and San Leandro, they called it a newborn — the firsts in the Bay Area to grace the year 2026.
The newest Bay Area residents came in quick succession on Jan. 1, with two babies born at Kaiser Permanente San Leandro Medical Center at 12:03 a.m. and 12:07 a.m., respectively, followed shortly by a babe born at 12:11 a.m. at Good Samaritan Hospital in San Jose, and another newborn at 12:29 a.m. in Redwood City.
Bay Area parents who had children at San Leandro Medical Center on New Year’s Day declined to be interviewed for this article.
At the Kaiser Permanente Redwood City Medical Center in the wee hours of Dec. 31, San Jose resident Marlowe Hatchett and her husband, Isaiah Andrews, said they were almost certain that their baby girl, Iyla Marie Andrews, would be born before midnight.
But after 22 hours of labor and midnight fast approaching, the marathon mother realized that baby Iyla would instead make an entrance in 2026. She was 6 pounds, 13 ounces, with “brown eyes” and “big red lips.”
“It was an indescribable feeling, just immediate love and excitement on what’s to come on the journey of parenthood,” Hatchett said. “And also just being able to see my husband’s excitement, it was just as incredible.”
And at 5 p.m. Dec. 31 in the South Bay, San Jose residents Barishma and Devajit Asem sought the delivery room at Good Samaritan Hospital and waited as the minutes turned into hours, and the day turned into a new year.
Next to his wife’s side, Devajit said he watched with admiration as Barishma delivered an 8-pound, 7.5-ounce boy named Wangthoi — a name meaning victorious and successful, and a reminder of their home state of Manipur in northeastern India.
“Welcoming the first baby of the New Year is always a special moment,” said Patrick Rohan, chief executive officer of Good Samaritan. “It’s a joyful way to start 2026, and we’re honored to be part of this family’s story.”
Recounting the birth, Devajit said he stared at a digital clock in the emergency room as the hours ticked by, which only added to the suspense. He thought each next push would bring forward his son. When Wangthoi entered the world at 12:11 a.m., and Devajit held his son for the first time, he said he realized the magnitude of the vast new responsibilities as a father.
“As a dad, as a parent, it’s a life-changing moment, and we are so in love with our big baby,” Devajit said. “I don’t know how to express it. … It’s a person.”
Devajit said he still has a lot to learn, confidence to build and a life to build with his new family, as two people became three. Despite his nervous apprehension about the challenges of being a new parent, his voice rattled with enthusiasm about what 2026 would bring for himself, Barishma and his new “big boy.”
“I’m excited about what the future holds for us, and also we love our baby boy. So yeah, we’re definitely looking forward to the journey ahead,” Devajit said. “We felt like we accomplished something, being able to deliver this baby boy on the first day of 2026.”
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