ICYMI: Maine Teacher Delivers Baby in High School Parking Lot Minutes After Class Ends
A Maine teacher dismissed her students, only to deliver a surprise baby in the school parking lot minutes later – talk about an unexpected lesson! 🌐 #News #OldTownME #Maine #Family
OLD TOWN, ME – Most teachers expect to wrap up the school day with a lesson plan in mind, not a birth plan. But for Tori Hildreth, a teacher in Old Town, Maine, her school day ended with the ultimate surprise: delivering her baby in the high school parking lot just minutes after saying goodbye to her students.
Hildreth, who teaches Jobs for Maine Graduates at Old Town High School, had been experiencing contractions throughout the day on October 8. Though full-term, she didn’t expect anything dramatic to happen before her due date at the end of the month. But by the time the dismissal bell rang at 2:05 p.m., those contractions had escalated from distant and manageable to just five minutes apart.
“I was talking to my students and said, ‘I probably will not be here tomorrow because I think that I’m going to have this baby soon,’” Hildreth told Fox 4. “Within the next 20 minutes, my contractions went from an hour apart to like five minutes apart.”
A Race Against Time
Realizing how fast things were progressing, Hildreth called the school nurse, Jana Caron, for help. She also reached out to her mother, Clarice Chavaree Hildreth, who worked nearby. Together, the two women tried to get Tori into a car to head to the hospital. But baby Bella had other plans.
“I was able to get my pants down, and then the baby came right then and there,” Hildreth explained to Fox 4. At exactly 2:18 p.m., Bella was born in the parking lot – catching everyone by surprise.
Paramedics arrived moments later, and among them was Tori’s father, Capt. Mike Hildreth of the Old Town Fire Department, who had driven the fire truck to the scene.
A Community Moment to Celebrate
The event brought a heartwarming sense of joy to the school, which shared the news on Facebook. “While schools often post about ‘miracles’ under the guise of a fantastic feat or an improbable win in the sports world, Old Town High School was the home to a true miracle on Tuesday afternoon,” the school wrote.
“Our school nurse, Jana Caron, and our School Resource Officer, Willy King, were summoned to the scene. As Tori was being moved into her mother’s car for transport home, Bella made the decision to leap into Nurse Jana’s waiting arms,” the post continued.
The school also noted the special bond the Hildreth family has with Old Town High School. Tori is an alum from the Class of 2012, her mother graduated in 1992, and her father in 1988.
“If my calculations are correct, Baby Bella will be (OTHS, Class of 2042),” the school wrote, adding a playful message: “Bella, we will be waiting for you!”
A Moment of Joy in the Everyday
This unexpected birth in a familiar place has added a new chapter to the Hildreth family’s connection with the school. What began as a typical day at Old Town High School ended with a perfectly imperfect moment – a baby’s arrival that will be remembered by the school community for years to come.
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