Southcoast Health announces first babies of the year in Fall River, New Bedford, one likely the first in Massachusetts

Fall River likely saw the first baby born of the year in 2023 in Massachusetts and the parents couldn’t be happier.

According to Southcoast Health, at almost exactly midnight, 12:00.35 a.m., on Sunday, January 1, parents Olineliz and Jordan Thompson of Fall River welcomed a daughter at Charlton Memorial Hospital. Possibly the first baby born in 2023 across the Commonwealth, Zahraliz Thompson was born weighing six pounds, 14.4 ounces, and measuring 20 inches long. She joins three older siblings in the family.

“It was a fast delivery and we are very happy and excited,” said Olineliz. The couple’s three older daughters, Joneliz Quinones, Arianna, and Aminaliz Thompson, and Zahraliz’s paternal grandmother Margaret Thompson were there to visit on New Year’s Day. 

At St. Luke’s Hospital, parents Amanda Dean and Alan Cuthill of Acushnet, Massachusetts, welcomed a son at 2:31 p.m. on Sunday, January 1.

Grayson was born weighing 6 pounds, 5.9 ounces, and measuring 21.5 inches long. Grayson is the couple’s first child. 

“The whole team at St. Luke’s has been amazing since the morning we walked in,” said Amanda Dean. “It was a wonderful experience and we truly couldn’t have asked for a better team to care for us and Grayson.”

Southcoast Health offers maternity services at Charlton Memorial Hospital in Fall River and St. Luke’s Hospital in New Bedford. Both locations recently earned recognition as high-performing in maternity care by the U.S. News and World Report.