Premature Baby Dies at 8 Months

Eight-month-old Ethan Sechrest, the premature baby who weighed just 14 ounces at birth and was small enough to fit in his doctor’s cupped hand, died Saturday.

“There was nothing more that human hands could do for him,” said his father, Alan.

Ethan became a media sensation in June when he was allowed to go home from Saddleback Memorial Medical Center. He weighed 3 pounds, 8 ounces at the time, making him one of the smallest premature babies to survive.

He made remarkable progress at home in Mission Viejo, growing to more than 8 pounds. But in September, a respiratory virus put him back in the hospital. With his white cell count near zero, his body was open to any new virus or infection.

On Saturday, the Sechrests decided to transfer their dying son from UCLA Medical Center’s pediatric intensive care unit to the Saddleback hospital. Alan and Deann Sechrest wanted him to be “surrounded by doctors and nurses who have cared and loved him and us” over the past eight months, Alan Sechrest said.

“He exceeded all expectations,” his father said of Ethan. “He was a very, very tough little guy. He fought valiantly.”

On Ethan’s final night, his older sister, Alison, 4, and brother, Austin, 3, said their goodbyes. He was baptized, and he died shortly before midnight.

“It’s broken our hearts,” said Ann Moore, whose e-mail prayer ministry followed Ethan’s progress. “He put up such a fight. . . . He was just too tiny to really make it.”

The Sechrests said their faith--and support from friends and strangers--enabled them to face each day.

“Ethan’s life has had a purpose in terms of teaching us about faith and being a light to others as well,” Alan Sechrest said. “God uses all things for good.”

In lieu of flowers, the family asks donations be sent to Coast Hills Community Church, 5 Pursuit, Aliso Viejo 92656, or Saddleback Memorial Foundation, c/o Infant Special Care Unit, 24451 Health Center Drive, Laguna Hills 92653.