Last Baby Born In 2016: Newark Hospital Congratulates Maplewood Mother

ESSEX COUNTY, NJ — The “first” baby of the New Year always grabs the headlines. But what about the last baby born to the old year? On Sunday, administrators at Newark Beth Israel Medical Center announced that Desirai Aliyah Price of Maplewood was the final baby born at the hospital in 2016.

New mother Delma Wright gave birth to Desirai at 10:53 p.m. on Dec. 31, administrators said.

Last year was also a headline-generating year for the opposite end of the age spectrum in New Jersey. In July, 113-year-old Adele Dunlap of Hunterdon County – a Newark native – officially became the “oldest person in America.”

When asked about the secret of his mother’s long life, her son, Earl Dunlap, responded that it was hard to pin down.

“She never went out jogging or anything like that,” Dunlap said. “She’s not really thin, but she never weighed more than 140 pounds. She smoked, and when my father had his first heart attack, they both stopped. I think she ate anything she wanted.”

• See related article: America’s New ‘Oldest’ Person Lives In NJ: Adele Dunlap, 113

Photo: Flickr Commons, Ewen Roberts

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