Broadview Heights couple records first birth of 2025 in Northeast Ohio
by Dan Holland
While many Northeast Ohioans were ringing in the new year at any number of area parties and galas, one Broadview Heights couple ended up celebrating the new year with a much more personal and special celebration.
Peter and Grace Sokol welcomed their second daughter, Hailey Michelle Sokol, into the world at 12:04 a.m. on Jan. 1 at Southwest General Health Center in Middleburg Heights, making her the first baby born in Northeast Ohio in 2025. She weighed in at 7 pounds, 6 ounces, and measured 20 ½ inches long.
Hailey’s arrival came a bit earlier than planned.
“The due date was Jan. 11, but we had a feeling she would come early since our first daughter came early as well,” explained Peter Sokol, who is a firefighter/paramedic for the city of Brooklyn. “We were there on the evening of the 31st, and they told us that we would have the baby pretty soon, but Grace wasn’t watching the clock at all. I did look up a couple of times at a clock and finally saw that we made it just into the new year.”
The young couple, who will celebrate their sixth wedding anniversary in February, first met during their sophomore years at Normandy High School in Parma 15 years ago. They have been residents of Broadview Heights since summer 2021.
Despite the timely birth, the couple was not barraged by a flood of local media outlets. But they have since heard from a multitude of family, friends and co-workers.
“I think some of the staff at the hospital knew that there might be a story in it, so they took some photos and got some quotes from us,” said Peter.
“We’ve had a lot of friends and family reach out to us saying that they saw us on one of the local news channels,” said Grace Sokol, who works as a pharmacist. “We didn’t tell people outside of family and our close circle of friends that we were having a second baby, so it wasn’t posted ahead of time on social media. It ended up catching a lot of people by surprise.”
Two-year-old sister Emma stepped right into her new role immediately, explained Peter.
“We tried to prep our daughter ahead of time, asking her if she was excited to be a big sister with baby sister Hailey on the way, and she’s been really excited about it,” said Peter. “She’s been really involved since the birth and wants to help us out with the baby, so we’re thankful for that.”
“Our daughter, Emma, can be shy at times when new people come around,” he continued. “She’s friendly, but it can take a minute for her to warm up. But as soon as she saw the baby, she got a big smile on her face and was very happy. We could tell how genuinely pleased she was to have a little sister. She warmed up much quicker than we could have ever imagined.”“Of course, all of the extra attention was unexpected, but It’s been great so far, with everyone reaching out to us so filled with love,” said Grace. “Everything went so well during the birth; the baby is healthy and there were no complications or anything like that. I just feel so happy, complete and whole right now with us being a family of four.”
photo caption: Peter and Grace Sokol, pictured with both of their daughters, Emma and Hailey, say they are adjusting well to being a family of four. Photo submitted.