Valley Couple Turn Loss Into Triumph for Children
12News.com
Posted: (12/8/99, 05:00 PM)

Losing a child is one of the most painful things a parent can suffer. A Valley couple is trying to turn their grief into someone else's joy.

It was a birthday party of sorts for the Morlan family today. They unloaded boxes of presents in honor of a little girl named Samantha Ashley. She was born on Dec. 8, 1998 at Phoenix Children's Hospital. She was born 13 weeks early, weighed only a pound, and lived such a short time.

“She died at age 3 days and we wanted other children to benefit from her existence, to do something positive,” said her mother, Lee Ann Morlan.

They decided to collect baby sleepers for the hospital's maternity ward.

“I think it's amazing what Mr. and Mrs. Morlan have done in honor of their daughter,” said Susan Patalano, a social worker at Good Samaritan Regional Medical Center. "So many babies have nothing to wear home from the hospital."

The Morlans collected 226 sleepers. It's a gift that Samatha Ashley’s dad hopes will do all kinds of good.

“Hopefully, it'll bring a little attention to preemies and that they are worth saving,” said Doug Morlan.

Their 7-year old son Nicholas was also born premature. Nicholas is proud of what his parents did. “I think it's cool that my mom got 200. That's a lot, huh?'

“I feel like this is something that will make us feel better too,” said Lee Ann. “This is a wonderful way to fill a need and also honor a very precious life.”