Herman Palacios Jr. was the first baby born at Hazel Hawkins Memorial Hospital in 2019.
Mother Mandy Palacios gave birth to Herman at 6:22 a.m. Tuesday, New Year’s Day, at the Hollister hospital. The mom and dad, Herman Palacios Sr., were ecstatic about the birth when interviewed Wednesday from the hospital’s Women’s Center.
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Palacios was the first of three babies born on New Year’s Day at Hazel Hawkins, said Frankie Gallagher, director of marketing for the hospital.
He’s likely the first of many for 2019 at Hazel Hawkins, which had 469 baby deliveries in 2018.
Palacios is the fourth child in the family, the mom and dad said from the Women’s Center of Hazel Hawkins on Wednesday, a day after their child’s birth. The other children in the family are ages 19, 14 and 2.
The baby boy was 8 pounds, 2.5 ounces and 21.5 inches long. His original due date was Christmas Day, so he came a week late.
“I had a little worry because he was was taking his time to come out,” the dad said.
The mother said she had a good experience with the birth at the hospital and the staff had treated her well. She was happy and thankful when nurses walked in and surprised the family with a gift basket containing an array of items and a gift card for having the first baby of 2019.
“It’s nice,” Mandy Palacios said of the Women’s Center. “It’s really nice – clean and upgraded, and everyone’s nice here.”
