Baby Claire Beating The Odds Despite Weighing 15.5 Ounces At Birth

A special fundraiser has been organized to help offset the medical expenses of a special baby that’s beating the odds despite weighing only 15.5 ounces at birth.

“Soups & Sweets For Claire” will take place Saturday evening, Feb. 15, from 5 - 7 p.m., at Our Lady of the Holy Rosary Catholic Church in Glenwood.

Claire Maria Barajas, the daughter of 1998 Glenwood Community High School graduate Danelle Roberston and Jose Barajas, was born 14 weeks premature on Aug. 29, 2019, in Portland, Ore. Claire’s been hospitalized and fighting for her life ever since.

“We were being monitored because she was measuring really small. She was growth-restricted,” Danelle said. “That’s why she came early - doctors were thinking they could be of more assistance if she were outside the womb instead of inside the womb.”

Danelle entered the hospital on Aug. 26 and both she and Claire were being monitored regularly. The hope was delivery could be put off as long as possible, but after just three days, doctors and Danelle decided it was time to deliver - by cesarean section.

“She was going to have a 50-50 shot at surviving at 26 weeks, but the odds were much dimmer if we didn’t deliver because she was measuring much smaller than a 26-week baby would be,” Danelle said. “She’s kind of been running along those lines since she’s been born - behind where she would be at a gestatioinal age.”

Claire’s lived her entire life in the neonatal intensive care unit at Randall Children’s Hospital in Portland. She’s undergone several procedures, including multiple intestinal surgeries, injections into her eyes (for treatment of a potentiallly blinding condition called Retinopathy of Prematurity) and laser surgery. She’s fought off a rhinovirus infection and dealt with respiratory problems. She’s required resuscitation.

“You’re just kind of holding on at the edge of your seat and just praying that they’re going to be able to bring her back, and they have,” Danelle said. “She’s really a tough baby. She has a reputation on the floor for being feisty and having a lot of opinions.

"They tell you when you first get into the NICU that it's going to be a roller coaster. I don't know how anybody can really prepare for all this stuff. They warn you, but really there's nothing that can prepare you.”

Now nearly six months old, Claire weighs 5 pounds, 7 ounces - gestationally the size of a 9-week-old baby.

Claire is expected to undergo an intestine reattachment surgery in the next week and will remain hospitalized to recover and gain some more weight.

Danelle is “overwhelmed” by the outpouring of support  - financially, emotionally and spiritually - Claire has received from her hometown of Glenwood. There have been fundraisers, prayer chains, care packages and messages of support.

“I feel so much support coming her way,” Danelle said. “The sense of community has really been at the forefront of how I feel about all this. I don’t even know how to articulate how thankful I am for everybody.

"How did we get so lucky? It makes me feel like, 'What can I do in the future to pay it forward?'"

Tickets for Saturday’s soup-and-dessert fund-raiser are $7 and can be purchased at the door or in advance at the Jim Hughes Real Estate office or from Danelle’s sister Holly Jackson (712-520-7958).