For over two decades, Jeannie Joseph had worked as a neonatal nurse. Over the years, she’s seen and heard stories of unusual circumstances in which babies were brought into this world. But 14 years ago, she played a major role in a story of her own that has now become huge, and it all started with a shoebox.

Jeannie was working at the Swedish American Hospital in Rockford, Illinois, on April 24, 2004. She was in the special care nursery when she was called from the emergency department and told they were someone to see her. Then, down the hall, she noticed a teary-eyed teen boy wearing a hoodie, and he was holding a shoebox. Jeannie was shocked when she looked inside the box.

Wrapped in a dish towel and a doll’s onesie, was a 3-pound baby inside the shoebox. The hospital staff put the baby in isolation immediately, while the teen just stood there. Three hours later, the staff managed to stabilize the baby, but Jeannie saw that the teen had waited and cried the entire time. So, she walked up to him in order to learn more.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kZ257GcBHlI