VENICE, Fla. — Benjamin Moran may only be a few days old, but he's the reason for a big celebration at Sarasota Memorial Hospital's Venice location.
At 9:39 p.m. on July 16, Benjamin became the 100th baby born at the hospital since it opened in Nov. 2021.
His parents, Miranda Weese and Kevin Moran, say his name was actually inspired by the special experience. They didn't have a name picked out when mom went into labor but had narrowed down the list to four names.
“Benjamin was the third one we had on our list and when our doctor told us we were in the race for the 100th baby, we decided if we did have the 100th baby we’d give him that name. Benjamin Franklin is on the 100-dollar bill, and our baby is the 100th born at this hospital,” she said.
Baby Benajmin's middle name has a special meaning, too.
The family chose to give their son the middle name "Anthony" in honor of Dr. Anthony Canino Jr., who brought Benjamin into the world along with labor and delivery nurses Andria Perry, RN; Tabby Bennet, RN; and Kayla Klein, LPN.
“We had our first baby at the Sarasota Campus and had a great experience there. We were thrilled our second baby could be born with the same awesome care, but closer to our home. Dr. Canino was amazing through my pregnancy and delivery, and we knew we wanted an ‘A’ name. The middle name Anthony will help us remember the wonderful experience here,” Miranda said.
Sarasota Memorial opened SMH-Venice last fall "to serve the growing south Sarasota County region," the hospital wrote in a release.
Along with the main campus, SMH-Venice is one of two hospitals in Sarasota that provide maternity and OB/GYN services. It has 10 private birthing suites that allow people in labor, their support systems and babies to stay together in the same room throughout the birthing experience.
Benjamin is getting ready to join his 6-year-old big brother Aiden at their home in Englewood. But, for now, he's helping the mother-baby nursing team celebrate the 100th baby with cupcakes and balloons.