Good Morning America | Angela Fernan

Nurse Adopts Baby She Had Cared For In The ICU

Updated September 7, 2021

Sometimes, people have the fortune of being in the right place at the right time.

We've heard all sorts of harrowing and sometimes tragic stories of those stuck in the opposite situation, but sometimes the more positive version of this phenomenon can make a tough situation end as smoothly as possible.

Sometimes it's because that person has a particular set of skills, but in the case of one Illinois nurse, it has more to do with compassion and the good fortune of having goals that sync up with someone else's needs.

For the past 32 years, Angela Farnan of Peoria, Illinois has worked in a Pediatric Intensive Care unit.

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But in those 32 years, none of her patients changed her life as much as one-year-old Blaze did when he ended up at OSF Children's Hospital.

Blaze was born with a congenital heart defect, which meant that he needed surgery three days after he was born.

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As CBS News reported, this was followed by another operation eight months later and he'll need a third by the time he turns five.

Blaze's condition left his mother with some unexpected challenges.

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Part of the problem was that she didn't live anywhere near the hospital, but Blaze also needed some special home care that cost more than she could pay for.

Farnan and Blaze's mother had become fast friends, so she asked Farnan to open her home to the baby.

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As Farnan told CBS News, "The good Lord put us where we are for a reason," and she and her husband provided Blaze with the care he needed before his second surgery in March of 2018.

However, by this time, Blaze's mom had come to a difficult and heartfelt decision: She thought Farnan should adopt him permanently.

As Farnan said, "It was an emotional time...She was in tears. Internally, we are ecstatic but sad for this mom who is feeling a loss."

Although it took a lot of soul-searching to bring the mother to her decision, Farnan's choice was much easier to make.

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She and her husband had already fallen in love with Blaze while they were caring for him, so adopting him didn't even require a second thought.

In the months since his operations, Blaze has recovered very well.

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According to Farnan, he can now walk, ride his bike, and blow kisses at the age of one. More than that, he is loved by more people in his life than ever before.

And since Farnan has always wanted to be a mother, she considers this new role an answer to her prayers.

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As she said, "I've always wanted to be a mother and then you just have to realize and trust in God and believe that he has a greater purpose for you."

h/t: CBS News

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