On October 9, 2014, Shane, the "bucket list" baby, was born into the arms of his loving family and relatives. A few hours later, he died because of his condition. Shane was born with anencephaly, a condition in the brain wherein some parts of the brain and skull are not present. Survival for babies with such condition is impossible.
Anencephaly occurs about 1 in 4,859 born babies according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.
Dan and Jenna Haley was informed that the baby they're expecting has a condition called anencephaly and survival outside the womb is impossible for him. The couple decided to carry him until term and deliver him to see the world. They created a bucket list for him before he will pass away.
The family went to a pumpkin patch, celebrated special occasions with the family, visited the zoo, went to New York, watched Dan play baseball and completed every other goal on the list. She did this while she was pregnant thinking that her son will enjoy them too.
They created a Facebook page called "Prayers for Shane" which garnered 600,000 plus followers. Every part of their travel was shared with others. The couple regarded the experience bitter sweet and at the same time an avenue for others to be inspired of their story.
Shane passed away after being baptized in front of the people who love him and believed in him. A few hours later, he died in the arms of her mother. "One thing we would want people to take away is that each human life is so valuable and that it's important to live each day to its fullest potential," Dan Haley said in an interview.
The strength of parents and their determination not to abort the baby is an inspiring story. Many will be inspired and enlightened of the importance of life.
