The Southside Messenger reports that a local mother has been bound by fate to a fellow community member and her premature baby through common experience. At the age of 19, Cheryl Traylor Daniel gave birth at 28 weeks to her son, James, on Oct. 10, 1999. At a weight of 1 pound and 2.4 ounces, the likelihood of her son’s survival stood at a mere 7 percent; lacking fully developed lungs, he passed away. Daniel’s story parallels Kayla Williams’, who was also 19 at the time of her pregnancy. Her son Ashton, born at just 25 weeks in Elizabethtown, N.C., has lived the entirety of his short life in the intensive care unit. Ashton weighs 1 pound and 13 ounces. Years after James’ death, Daniel has started a fund to provide the Williams family with assistance. The Southside Messenger Newspaper Office is currently accepting donations for Ashton. Any donations can be mailed or delivered to the office at 490 Railroad Ave., Keysville, Va. or at Prayers for Baby Ashton/The Williams’ Family at 1204 Thatford Court, P.O. Box 702, Fayetteville, N.C. 28304.
